As the standup comedian, a rising performer, steps onto her platform in New York, she's not only thinking about which jokes to deliver. Additionally, she weighs which topics to steer clear of. “I refrain from directly attacking the administration,” she stated. Or if she ventures there, she ensures it isn't captured for social media. “I'd never publish openly content where I openly disparage authorities … I believe this is a habit from China.”
The comedian, 39, resided in Shanghai for nearly a decade, departing in that year. By 2025, she relocated to America. Upon arrival, she dove into a frenzy of “overindulging on freedom,” attending lectures, demonstrations, and delving into New York’s public library.
However over the past year since the president was elected again, there has been a noticeable shift in the environment, she notes. “Back home, I understood where the line was, while in the US I find myself on unstable ground.”
Wang’s concerns mirror a new climate in America which numerous individuals from China, or people who have lived in China, perceive as eerily similar. Enemies are ostracised. The president expects absolute loyalty. Journalists face scrutiny. Establishments are attacked.
Trump has not been shy about his admiration for China's leader, China’s authoritarian figure. He's called Xi as a “great guy”. As they agreed a temporary truce in the trade war on Thursday, the bonhomie between both figures of nations with vastly different governance models became clear. Following years of optimism in the US that closer ties with the East could assist the growing nation become more open, under Trump 2.0, it appears as if America is being pulled in the Chinese direction, rather than vice versa.
“The United States is experiencing an era of cultural revolution,” said Zhang Qianfan, a professor at Peking University. “The top leader, Trump, is attempting to mobilise the masses in order to marginalize or weaken established figures … reminiscent of events in the country half a century ago.”
Ever since the administration unleashed the so-called a government streamlining body, or the agency, on the Washington bureaucracy at the start in office, many in China see US politics via the perspective of the Cultural Revolution. Be it the mobilisation of young people to carry out the leader’s will, or cleansing institutions of perceived enemies, the president from a Chinese viewpoint has brought Mao-style chaos to America, though without the same levels of violence.
But since the turmoil of the initial period of the new administration has calmed, a new, different kind of climate has settled in the country, which variously also feels familiar to many Chinese people.
‘The Beacon Has Become Dimmer’
The most profound parallel between Trump’s America and the East is the crackdown on open expression.
A former police officer, now a Chinese Communist party dissenter, found himself in the eye of a storm recently, the likes of which he once faced in his homeland. Deng resided in America for several years, having fled China due to pressure from the authorities.
Last fall, after the death of Charlie Kirk, Deng tweeted that Kirk was “despicable”. Similar to others across the US – many of whom were fired as a result of making negative comments about Kirk – Deng faced significant backlash. Relatives was doxed and he was accused of espionage attempting to create division.
“That event was a real shock. I hadn't thought such a thing would occur in America – what should only happen in a repressive state,” he commented.
His backlash originated from online peers, rather than the state, but such of public monitoring also has similarities with the East.
“In terms of targeting those who disagree and starting to surveil open discourse about issues deemed controversial … That’s starting to emerge here,” said an academic, an associate professor at Georgia State University. “That’s something observed in the East today as well,” she said, stating that concerns are rising in the US of students reporting on educators, a form of surveillance promoted by the CCP.
The professor, the legal expert, said that liberal Chinese intellectuals such as him once turned to America for ideals, since public debate on internal affairs in the country is risky. However, “America isn't some kind of ideal for Chinese liberals. America’s image has declined across the board.”
“We once viewed America as the beacon of constitutional democracy, but after Trump took power, that guide appears dimmer”.
Progressive Chinese, who are often, at least in private, critical of China’s political system, are increasingly finding it less objectionable than the US's, he stated. “It's somewhat difficult to acknowledge this reality … but after the pandemic, the government appears to be pursuing the right thing in improving the environment and promoting EVs and investing in hi-tech,” he noted, while “the West, as represented by America, appear in decline.”
The Trump administration’s purchase of shares in US companies has prompted comparisons with China, where the line between government and business is frequently unclear.
On Monday, authorities announced it will take an investor in a new company focused on rare earth processing, after taking similar stakes in additional firms deemed essential for the country's safety. These moves have made certain stakeholders concerned that America is embarking on a fresh phase of government meddling in the private sector.
There are still major differences between Trump’s America and China. Last month, multiple media outlets including the Guardian declined to agree to a Pentagon policy that demanded reporting solely on government-authorised news. American judiciary have halted or overturned numerous Trump’s actions, an action that would be impossible in the nation's party-dominated legal system.
An analyst, who established of Strategy Risks, a China-focused advisory firm, commented: “The United States might face the worst crisis of its history, far more severe than it is now, and it would remain freer, more open, and more liberal than the East under its leader.”
The professor notes that while numerous scholars in China were surprised to see US universities yield to official requests concerning diversity and inclusion practices and open discourse on campus, in the East, the top universities are publicly controlled inherently. Administrators, who are appointed by the state, “cannot of saying no. They can’t afford to be disobedient.”
Nevertheless, Americans are beginning to adopt measures previously confined to repressive regimes. One professor at a US university once outspoken on bilateral matters refused to speak for this piece. He stated: “Honestly, I am scared of the censorship here: I genuinely feel less afraid criticizing China's leader these days than say anything bad
