As Vickie Wang, a rising comedic talent, takes the stage in the Big Apple, she is not just considering which jokes to tell. She also carefully considers which topics to avoid. “I refrain from directly attacking the government,” she stated. And when she ventures there, she ensures it isn't recorded for online platforms. “I'd never publicly share material in which I directly criticize the government … I believe this is a learned behavior from China.”
The comedian, thirty-nine, lived in Shanghai for almost ten years, departing in 2022. In 2025, she moved to America. Upon arrival, she embarked on an intense period of “overindulging on democracy,” attending talks, demonstrations, and exploring the city's public library.
However over the past year after Donald Trump was elected for the second time, there has been a noticeable shift in the atmosphere, she says. “Back home, I knew where the line was, whereas here I find myself on unstable ground.”
Wang’s concerns reflect an emerging political reality in the US which many Chinese, or those with experience in the country, perceive as disturbingly familiar. Opponents are ostracised. The leader expects absolute loyalty. Reporters face scrutiny. Establishments come under fire.
The president has not been shy regarding his respect for Xi Jinping, China’s strongman leader. He has described Xi as a “great guy”. When they reached a brief ceasefire in economic tensions recently, the camaraderie between both figures of countries with vastly different political systems was evident. Following years of optimism in America that improved relations with China may help the rising power to liberalise, under Trump 2.0, it appears that America is shifting in the Chinese direction, rather than vice versa.
“The United States is undergoing an era of cultural revolution,” said a constitutional law expert, an academic at Peking University. “The president, Trump, is trying to mobilise the masses in order to sideline or undermine established figures … reminiscent of events in the country decades past.”
Ever since Trump initiated what's termed a government streamlining body, or Doge, on the Washington bureaucracy early on in office, many in China have viewed US politics via the perspective of China's historical period. Whether it is the rallying of the youth to carry out the leader’s will, or cleansing institutions of those deemed opposition, the president as viewed from China has delivered disorder reminiscent of Mao to the US, albeit absent the same levels of violence.
However after the upheaval of the early months under Trump has calmed, a new, distinct type of political atmosphere has emerged in the US, which in different ways seems recognizable to numerous Chinese people.
‘The Beacon Has Become Less Bright’
The deepest similarity between the US today and China is the suppression on free speech.
A former police officer, now a Chinese Communist party dissenter, ended up in a controversy this year, similar to what he once faced in China. He has lived in the US for several years, having fled the country due to harassment from officials.
In September, after the death of Charlie Kirk, he posted that Kirk was “despicable”. Similar to others across the US – many of whom were fired as a result of expressing criticism regarding him – he encountered significant backlash. His family had personal info leaked and he faced allegations of espionage attempting to divide the US.
“That event was a real shock. I hadn't thought that something like this would occur in America – something that should only happen in an authoritarian country,” he commented.
Deng’s backlash originated from fellow social media users, instead of the government, but such of public monitoring bears similarities with the East.
“Regarding going after those who disagree and starting to surveil public speech about issues deemed controversial … That’s starting to emerge in the US,” said Maria Repnikova, a scholar at a US university. “This is that you see in the East now as too,” she added, stating that there were now fears in America of pupils informing against educators, a type of surveillance that has been encouraged by the CCP.
The professor, the Peking University law professor, said that liberal Chinese intellectuals such as him once turned to the US for political inspiration, in part because openly discussing domestic politics in China is risky. However, “The US isn't a god for progressive Chinese. America’s image has worsened generally.”
“We once viewed the US as the beacon of democratic governance, but since the new administration, this lighthouse seems to have become less luminous”.
Progressive Chinese, who are often, at least in private, critical of the nation's governance, are increasingly finding it more acceptable than the US's, Zhang said. “It's somewhat difficult to acknowledge this … but post-COVID, authorities seems to be doing the right thing in improving the environment and promoting EVs and investing in hi-tech,” Zhang said, while “Western nations, exemplified by the United States, seems to be declining.”
The government's acquisition of stakes in American firms has prompted comparisons with China, where the line between state and business is frequently unclear.
On Monday, the US government stated it would become a shareholder in a new company specialising in mineral refinement, after taking comparable shares in other companies it considers vital to the country's safety. These moves have left certain stakeholders nervous that the US is embarking on a fresh phase of government meddling in private industry.
Yet, there remain significant distinctions between Trump’s America and China. In October, multiple media outlets among others declined to agree to a Pentagon policy that required they only report on approved information. US courts have blocked or reversed numerous presidential measures, an action that would be impossible in the nation's CCP-controlled legal system.
An analyst, who established of Strategy Risks, specializing in China, commented: “America could descend into its gravest challenge of its history, far more severe than it is now, and it would remain freer, open, and liberal than China under Xi.”
Zhang notes that although numerous scholars in the country were surprised to see American colleges yield to official requests concerning diversity and inclusion practices and open discourse on campus, in the East, the top universities are all state-owned by default. University leaders, who are appointed by the government, “have no liberty refuse. They can’t afford defy orders.”
Nevertheless, people in the US are beginning to take precautions that were once associated with more authoritarian countries. One professor at an American college who was previously outspoken on bilateral matters declined to be interviewed for this article. He said: “Honestly, I am scared of suppression in the US: I genuinely feel less afraid to criticise Xi now than say anything bad
