Trump's America During the New Administration Seems Oddly Familiar to Observers from the East

When Vickie Wang, a rising performer, takes her platform in New York, she's not only thinking about what humor to tell. Additionally, she carefully considers which topics to avoid. “I refrain from directly attacking the administration,” she stated. Or if she ventures there, she ensures it isn't captured for social media. “I would never publish openly material where I openly disparage authorities … I think this is a habit from China.”

The comedian, thirty-nine, resided in Shanghai for nearly ten years, leaving in 2022. In 2025, she moved to the US. Upon arrival, she embarked on a frenzy of “overindulging on democracy,” attending lectures, protests, and delving into New York’s public library.

But in the year since the president returned to office again, there's been a “palpable change” in the environment, she says. “Back home, I knew the boundaries, whereas in the US I find myself on shifting sands.”

Wang’s fears mirror an emerging climate in America which numerous individuals from China, or people with experience in China, find disturbingly similar. Opponents face exclusion. The leader demands total allegiance. Journalists are targeted. Institutions are attacked.

The president has not been shy regarding his respect for Xi Jinping, China’s authoritarian figure. He has described Xi as a “great guy”. When they reached a temporary truce in the trade war recently, the bonhomie between the two leaders of nations with vastly different political systems became clear. And after decades of optimism in America that closer ties with China may help the growing nation become more open, in the current administration, it appears as if America is shifting in China's path, instead of vice versa.

“The United States is undergoing an era of societal upheaval,” said Zhang Qianfan, an academic at Peking University. “The top leader, Trump, is attempting to mobilise the masses to sideline or weaken the elite … similar to events in China decades past.”

Since Trump initiated what's termed a government streamlining body, or Doge, on federal institutions at the start of his term, numerous Chinese observers see American governance through the lens of China's historical period. Whether it is the rallying of the youth to carry out the leader’s will, or purging institutions of those deemed opposition, Trump as viewed from China has delivered Mao-style chaos to the US, albeit without equivalent degrees of violence.

But after the upheaval of the early months of the new administration has calmed, a new, different kind of climate has emerged in the country, which in different ways seems recognizable to numerous Chinese individuals.

‘The Lighthouse Is Dimmer’

The most profound parallel between the US today and the East is the suppression on free speech.

A former police officer, turned CCP critic, ended up in a controversy recently, the likes of which he’d only previously experienced in his homeland. He has lived in the US for several years, having fled China because of harassment from officials.

In September, following the passing of a public figure, Deng tweeted that the individual was a “scumbag”. Like people across the US – many of whom were fired for expressing criticism regarding him – Deng faced a huge backlash. Relatives was doxed and he faced allegations of being a Chinese spy attempting to divide the US.

“That event surprised me deeply. I never imagined such a thing could happen in the United States – something that should only happen in an authoritarian country,” Deng said.

His backlash originated from online peers, instead of the state, but that kind of social surveillance bears parallels with the East.

“Regarding going after those who disagree and monitoring open discourse on topics that are sensitive … That’s starting to emerge in the US,” said an academic, a scholar at Georgia State University. “This is that you see in the East now as too,” she added, adding that concerns are rising in America of students reporting on teachers, a form of surveillance promoted by Chinese authorities.

The professor, the Peking University law professor, said that liberal Chinese intellectuals like himself used to look to America for ideals, in part because public debate on internal affairs in China is dangerous. But now, “America isn't some kind of god for Chinese liberals. The US's reputation has declined generally.”

“We used to see the US as the beacon of constitutional democracy, but after Trump took power, that guide seems to have become dimmer”.

Progressive Chinese, typically, behind closed doors, skeptical about the nation's governance, are increasingly finding it more acceptable than America’s, he stated. “It's somewhat painful to accept this … but post-COVID, authorities seems to be doing the right thing in environmental protection and promoting EVs and tech investment,” he noted, while “Western nations, as represented by the United States, appear in decline.”

The Trump administration’s acquisition of stakes in US companies has prompted parallels with the East, where the line between government and private industry is frequently unclear.

On Monday, authorities stated it will take a shareholder in a startup focused on mineral refinement, after taking similar stakes in additional firms deemed essential for the country's safety. The deals have made certain stakeholders concerned that the US is embarking on a fresh phase of government meddling in the private sector.

There are still significant distinctions between the US under Trump and the East. In October, multiple media outlets among others refused to sign to a defense department rule that demanded reporting solely on approved information. American judiciary have blocked or reversed many of presidential measures, an action that is impossible in the nation's CCP-controlled judiciary.

An analyst, 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 freer, open, and liberal than China under Xi.”

Zhang notes that while numerous scholars in China were shocked to see US universities yield to official requests regarding diversity and inclusion practices and open discourse on university grounds, in China, leading institutions are publicly controlled by default. University leaders, who are selected by the government, “have no liberty of saying no. They dare not to be disobedient.”

Nevertheless, people in the US are starting to adopt measures previously confined to repressive regimes. An academic at a US university who was previously outspoken on US-China issues refused to speak for this article. He stated: “Honestly, I fear of suppression here: I genuinely feel more comfortable to criticise Xi these days than say anything bad