The United States Under the New Administration Feels Oddly Recognizable to Observers from the East

When Vickie Wang, a rising comedic talent, takes the stage in New York, she's not just considering what humor to tell. Additionally, she carefully considers which topics to avoid. “I refrain from directly attacking the administration,” she stated. And when she does, she ensures it's not captured for online platforms. “I would never publicly share material in which I directly criticize the government … I think this is a learned behavior acquired back home.”

The comedian, thirty-nine, resided in Shanghai for almost a decade, departing in 2022. In 2025, she moved to the US. Upon arrival, she dove into an intense period of “revenge bingeing on democracy,” attending talks, demonstrations, and exploring New York’s library system.

But over the past year since Donald Trump returned to office again, there has been a noticeable shift in the atmosphere, she notes. “In China, I knew where the line was, while in the US I find myself on unstable ground.”

Her fears mirror an emerging climate in the US which numerous individuals from China, or those with experience in China, perceive as disturbingly similar. Enemies are ostracised. The president demands total allegiance. Reporters are targeted. Institutions are attacked.

Trump has openly expressed about his admiration for Xi Jinping, China’s authoritarian figure. He has described him as a “great guy”. When they reached a temporary truce in economic tensions on Thursday, the camaraderie between the two leaders of nations with diametrically opposed political systems became clear. And after decades of optimism in America that improved relations with the East could assist the growing nation become more open, in the current administration, it seems as if the US is shifting in China's path, instead of vice versa.

“The United States is experiencing a period of cultural revolution,” stated a constitutional law expert, a professor at a top Chinese university. “The president, Donald Trump, is trying to rally the masses in order to marginalize or weaken the elite … reminiscent of events in China half a century ago.”

Since Trump unleashed what's termed a government streamlining body, or Doge, on the Washington bureaucracy early on of his term, numerous Chinese observers see American governance via the perspective of the Cultural Revolution. Be it the mobilisation of young people to carry out presidential directives, or purging institutions of perceived enemies, Trump as viewed from China has brought disorder reminiscent of Mao to America, though absent the same levels of violence.

But since the turmoil of the initial period of the new administration has calmed, a new, distinct type of climate has settled in the US, which in different ways also feels familiar to numerous Chinese individuals.

‘The Lighthouse Has Become Less Bright’

The deepest parallel between Trump’s America and the East is the suppression on free speech.

A former police officer, turned Chinese Communist party dissenter, found himself in a controversy recently, similar to what he once faced in his homeland. Deng has lived in the US since 2019, having fled the country due to harassment from the authorities.

In September, following the passing of a public figure, he posted that Kirk was a “scumbag”. Like people nationwide – who were fired as a result of making negative comments regarding him – he encountered significant backlash. His family had personal info leaked and he faced allegations of espionage attempting to create division.

“That event was a real shock. I never imagined such a thing could happen in the United States – something that should only happen in a repressive state,” Deng said.

His pile on originated from fellow social media users, rather than the government, but such of public monitoring bears similarities with the East.

“Regarding targeting those who disagree and monitoring open discourse on topics that are sensitive … That’s starting to emerge here,” noted an academic, a scholar at a US university. “This is observed in the East today as too,” she said, stating that there were now fears in America of students reporting on educators, a type of monitoring that has been encouraged by the CCP.

The professor, the legal expert, explained that liberal Chinese intellectuals such as him once turned to the US for ideals, since public debate on domestic politics in the country is risky. But now, “America isn't some kind of ideal for Chinese liberals. The US's reputation has worsened generally.”

“We once viewed the US as the beacon of constitutional democracy, but since the new administration, this lighthouse seems to have become less luminous”.

Chinese liberals, who are often, at least in private, critical of the nation's governance, are increasingly finding it less objectionable than the US's, Zhang said. “It's somewhat difficult to acknowledge this reality … but post-COVID, the government appears to be pursuing the right thing in improving the environment and promoting EVs and tech investment,” he noted, while “Western nations, as represented by the United States, seems to be in decline.”

The Trump administration’s acquisition of stakes in American firms has also drawn parallels with China, where the line between government and private industry is often blurred.

Recently, authorities stated it would become an investor in a startup specialising in mineral refinement, after taking comparable shares in other companies deemed vital to national security. These moves have made some investors nervous that America is embarking on a fresh phase of state intervention in private industry.

There are still major differences between the US under Trump and the East. Last month, several news organisations among others declined to agree to a Pentagon policy that required reporting solely on government-authorised news. US courts have blocked or overturned numerous Trump’s actions, an action that would be impossible in China’s CCP-controlled judiciary.

An analyst, the founder of a consulting firm, specializing in China, said: “The United States could descend into its gravest challenge of its history, far more severe than it is now, and it would remain freer, open, and more liberal than China under Xi.”

The professor observes that while many intellectuals in the country were surprised to see American colleges capitulate to official requests regarding diversity and inclusion practices and open discourse on campus, in China, the top universities are all state-owned inherently. Administrators, which are appointed by the government, “have no liberty refuse. They dare not to be disobedient.”

Nevertheless, people in the US are starting to adopt measures previously associated with more authoritarian countries. An academic at an American college who was previously vocal on bilateral matters refused to be interviewed for this piece. He said: “Honestly, I am scared of the censorship in the US: I genuinely feel more comfortable to criticise Xi now than say anything bad