Trump's America During the New Administration Seems Strangely Familiar to Those Watching from the East

As the standup comedian, a rising comedic talent, takes the stage in the Big Apple, she's not only considering which jokes to tell. She also carefully considers what subjects to steer clear of. “I don't engage in directly attacking the administration,” she explained. And when she ventures there, she ensures it's not captured for social media. “I would never publish openly material where I openly disparage the government … I believe this is a learned behavior from China.”

Wang, thirty-nine, resided in Shanghai for nearly ten years, departing in that year. In 2025, she relocated to America. When she got there, she embarked on an intense period of “revenge bingeing on democracy,” going to talks, demonstrations, and delving into New York’s public library.

However in the year after Donald Trump returned to office again, there has been a noticeable shift in the atmosphere, she notes. “In China, I understood where the line was, while in the US I'm standing on shifting sands.”

Her concerns reflect an emerging political reality in America which many Chinese, or people with experience in China, perceive as eerily similar. Opponents are ostracised. The leader expects absolute loyalty. Reporters face scrutiny. Institutions come under fire.

The president has not been shy about his admiration for Xi Jinping, the nation's authoritarian figure. He has described him as “fantastic”. When they reached a temporary truce in economic tensions on Thursday, the bonhomie between both figures of nations with vastly different political systems was evident. And after decades of hope in America that closer ties with China could assist the growing nation to liberalise, in the current administration, it seems that America is being pulled in China's path, rather than vice versa.

“America is experiencing an era of societal upheaval,” said a constitutional law expert, an academic at Peking University. “The top leader, Donald Trump, is trying to mobilise the masses in order to marginalize or weaken the elite … reminiscent of what happened in China half a century ago.”

Ever since the administration initiated the so-called a government streamlining body, or Doge, on federal institutions at the start of his term, numerous Chinese observers see US politics through the lens of China's historical period. Be it the mobilisation of young people to carry out the leader’s will, or purging institutions of perceived enemies, Trump from a Chinese viewpoint has brought disorder reminiscent of Mao to America, albeit absent the same levels of violence.

However since the turmoil of the early months of the new administration subsided, an unfamiliar, distinct type of climate has settled in the US, which variously also feels recognizable to many Chinese individuals.

‘The Lighthouse Is Dimmer’

The most profound parallel between Trump’s America and the East is the suppression on open expression.

Deng Haiyan, 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 since 2019, after escaping the country due to pressure from officials.

In September, following the passing of Charlie Kirk, Deng tweeted that Kirk was a “scumbag”. Like people across the US – who lost their jobs as a result of expressing criticism about Kirk – Deng faced significant backlash. Relatives had personal info leaked and he faced allegations of being a Chinese spy attempting to divide the US.

“This incident surprised me deeply. I hadn't thought such a thing would occur in America – what typically happens in a repressive state,” Deng said.

Deng’s 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 public speech on topics that are sensitive … It's appearing here,” said an academic, an associate professor at Georgia State University. “That’s something that you see in China today as too,” she added, adding that there were now fears in America of pupils informing against teachers, a form of monitoring promoted by the CCP.

The professor, the Peking University law professor, said that progressive thinkers such as him used to look to America for ideals, in part because public debate on internal affairs in the country is risky. However, “America isn't some kind of god for progressive Chinese. The US's reputation has declined across the board.”

“We used to see America as the symbol of constitutional democracy, but since the new administration, this lighthouse seems to have become dimmer”.

Chinese liberals, who are often, behind closed doors, critical of the nation's governance, now perceive it less objectionable than the US's, Zhang said. “It's somewhat painful to accept this reality … but post-COVID, the government seems to be doing correct policies in improving the environment and promoting EVs and investing in hi-tech,” he noted, while “the West, exemplified by America, seems to be in decline.”

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

On Monday, the US government announced it will take a shareholder in a new company focused on rare earth processing, after taking comparable shares in other companies deemed essential for national security. The deals have left some investors concerned that the US is entering a new era of government meddling in private industry.

There are still significant distinctions between Trump’s America and the East. In October, multiple media outlets including the Guardian refused to sign to a Pentagon policy that demanded they only report on government-authorised information. US courts have halted or reversed numerous Trump’s actions, an action that would be impossible in the nation's CCP-controlled legal system.

An analyst, the founder of a consulting firm, a China-focused advisory firm, commented: “America might face its gravest challenge of all time, orders of magnitudes worse than currently, and it would remain freer, more open, and liberal than the East under its leader.”

The professor notes that while many intellectuals in China were shocked to see US universities yield to government demands regarding diversity and inclusion practices and free speech on campus, in the East, leading institutions are publicly controlled by default. University leaders, which 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 more authoritarian countries. One professor at a US university who was previously outspoken on bilateral matters refused to be interviewed for this article. He said: “The truth is, I fear of the censorship here: I genuinely feel less afraid to criticise Xi now than say anything bad