Trump's America During the New Administration Seems Oddly Recognizable to Those Watching from China

When Vickie Wang, a rising comedic talent, steps onto her platform in the Big Apple, she is not only considering which jokes to tell. Additionally, she weighs what subjects to steer clear of. “I refrain from openly criticizing the administration,” she stated. Or if she does, she ensures it's not captured for social media. “I'd never publicly share content in which I openly disparage authorities … I believe this is a learned behavior from China.”

The comedian, 39, lived in the Chinese metropolis for almost ten years, leaving in 2022. By 2025, she relocated to America. Upon arrival, she embarked on a frenzy of “revenge bingeing on freedom,” going to lectures, demonstrations, and exploring the city's public library.

However over the past year since the president was elected again, there's been a “palpable change” in the environment, she says. “In China, I understood where the line was, whereas here I find myself on unstable ground.”

Her concerns reflect an emerging climate in the US which numerous individuals from China, or those who have lived in China, find disturbingly familiar. Opponents face exclusion. The president expects total allegiance. Journalists face scrutiny. Institutions are attacked.

Trump has not been shy regarding his respect for Xi Jinping, the nation's strongman leader. He's called Xi as “fantastic”. When they reached a brief ceasefire in economic tensions recently, the camaraderie between both figures of nations with diametrically opposed governance models was evident. Following years of hope in the US that improved relations with China could assist the rising power to liberalise, in the current administration, it appears as if America is being pulled in the Chinese direction, instead of vice versa.

“America is undergoing a period of cultural revolution,” stated a constitutional law expert, an academic at a top Chinese university. “The president, Donald Trump, is attempting to rally the masses in order to sideline or undermine the elite … similar to what happened in the country half a century ago.”

Since Trump initiated the so-called Department for Government Efficiency, or Doge, on federal institutions at the start in office, numerous Chinese observers see US politics via the perspective of China's historical period. Whether it is the rallying of young people to execute the leader’s will, or purging institutions of perceived enemies, Trump as viewed from China has brought Mao-style chaos to America, though without the same levels of force.

However since the turmoil of the early months under Trump subsided, a new, different kind of political atmosphere has emerged in the country, which variously seems familiar to many Chinese people.

‘The Beacon Has Become Less Bright’

The most profound similarity between Trump’s America and China is the crackdown on open expression.

Deng Haiyan, now a CCP critic, found himself in a controversy recently, similar to what he’d only previously experienced in his homeland. He resided in the US for several years, having fled China because of pressure from officials.

Last fall, following the passing of Charlie Kirk, he posted that the individual was “despicable”. Similar to others nationwide – many of whom lost their jobs as a result of expressing criticism about Kirk – Deng faced a huge backlash. His family had personal info leaked and he was accused of espionage seeking to divide the US.

“This incident surprised me deeply. I never imagined that something like this could happen in the United States – something that should only happen in a repressive state,” Deng said.

Deng’s pile on came from fellow social media users, instead of the state, but such of public monitoring bears similarities with China.

“In terms of targeting those who disagree and monitoring open discourse on topics that are sensitive … It's appearing here,” said an academic, a scholar at a US university. “That’s something that you see in the East today as too,” she added, stating that there were now fears in America of students reporting on teachers, a form of surveillance promoted by Chinese authorities.

Zhang, the Peking University law professor, explained that liberal Chinese intellectuals such as him used to look to America for political inspiration, since public debate on internal affairs in China is dangerous. But now, “America is no longer some kind of ideal for Chinese liberals. America’s image has declined generally.”

“We once viewed the US as the beacon of constitutional democracy, but after Trump took power, that guide appears less luminous”.

Progressive Chinese, who are often, behind closed doors, skeptical about China’s political system, now perceive it less objectionable than the US's, Zhang said. “It’s sort of painful to accept this … but after the pandemic, the government seems to be doing correct policies in improving the environment and developing electric cars and investing in hi-tech,” he noted, while “the West, as represented by the United States, seems to be declining.”

The Trump administration’s purchase of stakes in US companies has also drawn comparisons with China, where the distinction between government and private industry is frequently unclear.

Recently, authorities announced it would become a shareholder in a startup focused on mineral refinement, after taking comparable shares in additional firms deemed vital to national security. These moves have made some investors concerned that the US is entering a fresh phase of government meddling in private industry.

There are still significant distinctions between Trump’s America and China. Last month, multiple media outlets among others declined to agree to a Pentagon policy that required reporting solely on government-authorised news. American judiciary have halted or overturned many of presidential measures, something that would be impossible in the nation's CCP-controlled legal system.

An analyst, who established of Strategy Risks, a China-focused advisory firm, commented: “America could descend into the worst crisis of its history, orders of magnitudes worse than currently, and it will still be more free, more open, and more liberal than the East under its leader.”

The professor observes that although many intellectuals in China were shocked to see US universities yield to official requests concerning diversity and inclusion practices and free speech on university grounds, in China, the top universities are publicly controlled by default. University leaders, which are appointed by the government, “cannot refuse. They dare not to be disobedient.”

Still, people in the US are starting to take precautions that were once confined to more authoritarian countries. One professor at a US university once vocal on US-China issues declined to be interviewed for this piece. He stated: “Honestly, I fear of the censorship here: I actually feel less afraid to criticise Xi now than say anything bad