The United States During Trump's Second Term Seems Strangely Familiar to Those Watching from the East

When Vickie Wang, an emerging performer, steps onto her platform in New York, she's not just considering what humor to tell. She also carefully considers which topics to steer clear of. “I refrain from openly criticizing the government,” she explained. Or if she does, she makes certain it's not captured for online platforms. “I would never publish openly material in which I openly disparage authorities … I think it's a habit from China.”

The comedian, 39, lived in the Chinese metropolis for almost ten years, departing in that year. In 2025, she relocated to the US. When she got there, she dove into an intense period of “overindulging on freedom,” going to lectures, protests, and delving into New York’s library system.

But in the year after Donald Trump returned to office again, there's been a noticeable shift in the environment, she notes. “In China, I knew where the line was, whereas here I'm standing on unstable ground.”

Wang’s concerns reflect an emerging climate in the US which numerous individuals from China, or those with experience in the country, find eerily familiar. Opponents are ostracised. The leader expects total allegiance. Reporters are targeted. Establishments come under fire.

The president has not been shy about his admiration for Xi Jinping, China’s authoritarian figure. He has described Xi as “fantastic”. When they reached a temporary truce in the trade war on Thursday, the camaraderie between the two leaders of countries with diametrically opposed governance models was evident. Following years of hope in America that closer ties with China could assist the rising power become more open, in the current administration, it appears as if America is shifting in China's path, instead of the other way around.

“America is undergoing a period of cultural revolution,” said a constitutional law expert, an academic at a top Chinese university. “The president, Donald Trump, is trying to rally the masses to marginalize or undermine the elite … reminiscent of events in China half a century ago.”

Since Trump initiated what's termed a government streamlining body, or the agency, on the Washington bureaucracy at the start in office, numerous Chinese observers have viewed American governance through the lens of China's historical period. Be it the rallying of young people to carry out presidential directives, or purging institutions of perceived enemies, the president as viewed from China has delivered Mao-style chaos to America, though without equivalent degrees of force.

But since the turmoil of the early months of the new administration subsided, a new, distinct type of political atmosphere has emerged in the country, which variously seems recognizable to many Chinese individuals.

‘The Beacon Is Dimmer’

The most profound similarity between the US today and China is the suppression on free speech.

A former police officer, turned Chinese Communist party dissenter, found himself in a controversy this year, the likes of which he’d only previously experienced in China. Deng resided in the US since 2019, having fled China due to harassment from officials.

In September, following the passing of Charlie Kirk, he posted that Kirk was a “scumbag”. Like people across the US – who were fired as a result of expressing criticism regarding him – he encountered a huge backlash. His family was doxed and he was accused of espionage seeking to divide the US.

“That event surprised me deeply. I never imagined such a thing could happen in America – something that typically happens in an authoritarian country,” he commented.

Deng’s pile on originated from online peers, instead of the state, but that kind of social surveillance bears similarities with China.

“Regarding targeting those who disagree and monitoring open discourse on topics deemed controversial … That’s starting to emerge here,” said Maria Repnikova, a scholar at Georgia State University. “This is observed in China today as well,” she said, stating that concerns are rising in America of pupils informing against teachers, a type of surveillance that has been encouraged by Chinese authorities.

The professor, the legal expert, said that liberal Chinese intellectuals like himself once turned to the US for ideals, in part because public debate on domestic politics in China is dangerous. But now, “The US isn't a ideal for progressive Chinese. The US's reputation has worsened generally.”

“We once viewed America as the beacon of democratic governance, but after Trump took power, this lighthouse seems to have become dimmer”.

Progressive Chinese, who are often, behind closed doors, skeptical about China’s political system, now perceive it more acceptable than America’s, he stated. “It's somewhat difficult to acknowledge this … but after the pandemic, the government seems to be doing correct policies in environmental protection and developing electric cars and investing in hi-tech,” he noted, while “the West, exemplified by America, appear in decline.”

The government's acquisition of stakes in American firms has also drawn parallels with China, where the distinction between state and business is frequently unclear.

Recently, authorities stated it would become an investor in a new company focused on mineral refinement, after taking comparable shares in other companies it considers vital to national security. The deals have left some investors nervous that the US is embarking on a new era of state intervention in the private sector.

There are still significant distinctions between the US under Trump and China. Last month, several news organisations among others refused to sign to a Pentagon policy that demanded they only report on government-authorised information. US courts have halted or reversed numerous Trump’s actions, something that would be unthinkable in China’s party-dominated judiciary.

Isaac Stone Fish, the founder of a consulting firm, specializing in China, commented: “America could descend into the worst crisis of all time, far more severe than it is now, and it would remain more free, open, and more liberal than the East under its leader.”

The professor observes that while numerous scholars in the country were surprised to see American colleges capitulate to government demands concerning diversity and inclusion practices and open discourse on campus, in China, leading institutions are publicly controlled inherently. University leaders, who are selected by the government, “cannot of saying no. They dare not to be disobedient.”

Still, Americans are beginning to take precautions previously associated with repressive regimes. An academic at a US university who was previously vocal on US-China issues declined to speak for this piece. He stated: “The truth is, I am scared of suppression in the US: I genuinely feel more comfortable to criticise Xi these days than say anything bad