As the standup comedian, an emerging performer, steps onto the stage in New York, she is not just considering what humor to tell. Additionally, she weighs what subjects to steer clear of. “I don't engage in directly attacking the administration,” she explained. And when she does, she ensures it's not captured for online platforms. “I would never publish openly material where I openly disparage authorities … I think this is a habit acquired back home.”
Wang, 39, resided in the Chinese metropolis for almost ten years, leaving in that year. In 2025, she moved to America. When she got there, she dove into a frenzy of “overindulging on democracy,” attending lectures, protests, and delving into the city's library system.
However over the past year after Donald Trump was elected for the second time, there's been a noticeable shift in the environment, she says. “In China, I knew the boundaries, whereas in the US I find myself on unstable ground.”
Wang’s concerns mirror an emerging political reality in the US which many Chinese, or those who have lived in China, find disturbingly similar. Opponents are ostracised. The leader expects total allegiance. Journalists are targeted. Establishments come under fire.
The president has openly expressed about his admiration for China's leader, China’s strongman leader. He has described him as “fantastic”. When they reached a brief ceasefire in the trade war recently, the camaraderie between the two leaders of nations with diametrically opposed governance models became clear. And after decades of hope in the US that closer ties with China could assist the growing nation to liberalise, in the current administration, it seems as if the US is being pulled in the Chinese direction, instead of the other way around.
“The United States is experiencing a period of societal upheaval,” said Zhang Qianfan, an academic at a top Chinese university. “The top leader, Trump, is attempting to rally the grassroots to marginalize or undermine the elite … similar to what happened in China half a century ago.”
Ever since the administration unleashed the so-called a government streamlining body, or Doge, on federal institutions at the start of his term, numerous Chinese observers have viewed US politics via the perspective of the Cultural Revolution. Whether it is the mobilisation of young people to execute presidential directives, or cleansing organizations of perceived enemies, the president as viewed from China has brought disorder reminiscent of Mao to America, albeit absent the same levels of violence.
But after the turmoil of the early months under Trump subsided, a new, different kind of climate has settled in the US, which variously seems familiar to many Chinese people.
‘The Lighthouse Is Less Bright’
The most profound similarity between the US today and the East is the suppression on free speech.
A former police officer, now a CCP dissenter, found himself in the eye of a storm this year, similar to what he’d only previously experienced in China. He has lived in America for several years, having fled the country due to pressure from the authorities.
In September, following the passing of a public figure, he posted that the individual was “despicable”. Similar to others nationwide – many of whom were fired as a result of making negative comments about Kirk – he encountered significant backlash. His family was doxed and he was accused of espionage seeking to divide the US.
“This incident was a real shock. I never imagined such a thing would occur in America – something that should only happen in a repressive state,” Deng said.
Deng’s backlash came from fellow social media users, rather than the state, but such of social surveillance also has parallels with China.
“Regarding targeting those who disagree and starting to surveil public speech about issues that are sensitive … It's appearing in the US,” said an academic, an associate professor at Georgia State University. “This is that you see in China now as too,” she said, adding that there were now fears in the US of pupils informing against teachers, a type of monitoring that has been encouraged by the CCP.
Zhang, the legal expert, said that progressive thinkers such as him once turned to the US for ideals, in part because openly discussing domestic politics in the country is risky. But now, “America isn't a ideal for progressive Chinese. America’s image has declined generally.”
“We used to see the US as the symbol of democratic governance, but since the new administration, this lighthouse seems to have become dimmer”.
Progressive Chinese, who are often, behind closed doors, critical of China’s political system, are increasingly finding it less objectionable than the US's, he stated. “It's somewhat painful to accept this … but post-COVID, the government seems to be doing the right thing in improving the environment and developing electric cars and investing in hi-tech,” Zhang said, while “the West, exemplified by America, appear declining.”
The Trump administration’s purchase of shares in American firms has also drawn comparisons with China, where the distinction between government and private industry is often blurred.
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 essential for the country's safety. The deals have made certain stakeholders nervous that the US is entering a new era of state intervention in the private sector.
There are still significant distinctions between Trump’s America and the East. In October, several news organisations among others refused to sign to a Pentagon policy that required reporting solely on government-authorised news. US courts have blocked or overturned many of presidential measures, something that is impossible in the nation's CCP-controlled legal system.
An analyst, the founder of a consulting firm, specializing in China, commented: “America might face its gravest challenge of all time, orders of magnitudes worse than it is now, and it would remain freer, more open, and liberal than the East under its leader.”
Zhang notes that while numerous scholars in the country were surprised to see American colleges yield to official requests concerning DEI policies and free speech on campus, in China, leading institutions are publicly controlled by default. Administrators, who are appointed by the government, “have no liberty of saying no. They dare not defy orders.”
Still, people in the US are beginning to adopt measures that were once confined to more authoritarian countries. One professor at an American college who was previously outspoken on US-China issues refused to be interviewed for this piece. He stated: “Honestly, I fear of the censorship in the US: I actually feel more comfortable criticizing China's leader these days than say anything bad
