Trump's United States During the New Administration Feels Strangely Recognizable to Observers from the East

When the standup comedian, a rising comedic talent, takes her platform in the Big Apple, she's not just considering what humor to deliver. 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 isn't recorded for online platforms. “I'd never publicly share content where I directly criticize the government … I believe this is a habit from China.”

Wang, 39, lived in the Chinese metropolis for nearly a decade, departing in 2022. In 2025, she moved to the US. When she got there, she dove into a frenzy of “revenge bingeing on democracy,” attending lectures, demonstrations, and delving into New York’s public library.

However in the year since Donald Trump returned to office again, there's been a noticeable shift in the atmosphere, she notes. “In China, I knew where the line was, whereas here I find myself on shifting sands.”

Wang’s concerns mirror a new political reality in America which many Chinese, or those who have lived in the country, find eerily similar. Enemies are ostracised. The president demands total allegiance. Journalists face scrutiny. Institutions come under fire.

The president has not been shy about his admiration for China's leader, the nation's strongman leader. He's called him as a “great guy”. When they reached a brief ceasefire in economic tensions on Thursday, the camaraderie between the two leaders of countries with diametrically opposed political systems became clear. Following years of optimism in the US that improved relations with China could assist the rising power to liberalise, under Trump 2.0, it seems that America is being pulled in the Chinese direction, rather than vice versa.

“The United States is undergoing a period of societal upheaval,” stated Zhang Qianfan, an academic at a top Chinese university. “The president, Trump, is attempting to mobilise the masses to marginalize or undermine established figures … reminiscent of events in China decades past.”

Since the administration unleashed the so-called Department for Government Efficiency, or the agency, on federal institutions at the start of his term, numerous Chinese observers have viewed American governance through the lens of the Cultural Revolution. Whether it is the rallying of the youth to execute the leader’s will, or purging organizations of those deemed opposition, Trump as viewed from China has brought Mao-style chaos to America, albeit without equivalent degrees of force.

However since the upheaval of the early months under Trump has calmed, a new, different kind of political atmosphere has emerged in the country, which in different ways also feels familiar to numerous Chinese individuals.

‘The Beacon Has Become Less Bright’

The deepest parallel between Trump’s America and China is the suppression on open expression.

Deng Haiyan, turned Chinese Communist party dissenter, found himself in a controversy this year, the likes of which he once faced in his homeland. Deng has lived in the US since 2019, after escaping the country due to harassment from the authorities.

In September, after the death of Charlie Kirk, Deng tweeted that Kirk was “despicable”. Like people across the US – 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 was a real shock. I hadn't thought that something like this would occur in America – something that should only happen in a repressive state,” Deng said.

Deng’s pile on came from online peers, rather than the state, but that kind of public monitoring also has similarities with China.

“Regarding targeting those who disagree and monitoring public speech about issues that are sensitive … That’s starting to emerge here,” said Maria Repnikova, an associate professor at Georgia State University. “That’s something that you see in China today as well,” she said, stating that there were now fears in America of students reporting on educators, a type of surveillance promoted by the CCP.

Zhang, the legal expert, explained that progressive thinkers such as him once turned to America for political inspiration, since public debate on internal affairs in China is risky. However, “America isn't some kind of god for Chinese liberals. The US's reputation has declined across the board.”

“We used to see the US as the beacon of democratic governance, but since the new administration, this lighthouse appears dimmer”.

Progressive Chinese, who are often, behind closed doors, skeptical about the nation's governance, 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 appears to be pursuing correct policies in environmental protection and promoting EVs and tech investment,” he noted, while “the West, exemplified by America, appear declining.”

The government's purchase of shares in American firms has also drawn parallels with the East, where the line between state and private industry is frequently unclear.

Recently, authorities announced it would become an investor in a startup focused on mineral refinement, following similar stakes in additional firms it considers vital to national security. The deals have made some investors concerned that the US is embarking on a new era of government meddling in private industry.

There are still significant distinctions between the US under Trump and China. In October, multiple media outlets including the Guardian declined to agree to a defense department rule that required they only report on approved news. American judiciary have halted or overturned many of Trump’s actions, an action that would be unthinkable in China’s CCP-controlled judiciary.

Isaac Stone Fish, the founder of Strategy Risks, specializing in China, said: “The United States could descend into the worst crisis of all time, 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 notes that while numerous scholars in the country were shocked to see American colleges yield to government demands concerning diversity and inclusion practices and open discourse on campus, in the East, the top universities are all state-owned inherently. Administrators, who are appointed by the state, “cannot refuse. They can’t afford defy orders.”

Still, Americans are beginning to adopt measures that were once associated with repressive regimes. An academic at a US university once outspoken on US-China issues declined to speak for this article. He stated: “Honestly, I am scared of suppression here: I genuinely feel more comfortable criticizing China's leader these days than say anything bad