The America Under Trump's Second Term Seems Oddly Recognizable to Observers from the East

When Vickie Wang, a rising comedic talent, takes the stage in New York, she is not only thinking about which jokes to tell. She also carefully considers what subjects to steer clear of. “I refrain from openly criticizing the government,” she stated. Or if she ventures there, she makes certain it's not captured for social media. “I'd never publish openly material in which I openly disparage authorities … I think it's a learned behavior from China.”

The comedian, 39, lived in Shanghai for nearly ten years, departing in 2022. In 2025, she relocated to the US. Upon arrival, she dove into a frenzy of “overindulging on freedom,” going to lectures, demonstrations, and delving into the city's public library.

But over the past year after the president was elected for the second time, there has been a “palpable change” in the environment, she says. “In China, I knew where the line was, while here I'm standing on unstable ground.”

Wang’s fears reflect a new climate in the US which numerous individuals from China, or those with experience in the country, find disturbingly similar. Opponents are ostracised. The leader expects total allegiance. Reporters are targeted. Institutions come under fire.

Trump has not been shy about his admiration for China's leader, China’s authoritarian figure. He has described him as “fantastic”. As they agreed a temporary truce in economic tensions on Thursday, the bonhomie between the two leaders of countries with vastly different political systems was evident. Following years of hope in the US that improved relations with the East could assist the growing nation become more open, under Trump 2.0, it seems that America is shifting in China's path, instead of vice versa.

“America is undergoing an era of societal upheaval,” stated Zhang Qianfan, a professor at a top Chinese university. “The president, Trump, is trying to mobilise the masses in order to marginalize or weaken established figures … similar to events in China half a century ago.”

Since the administration initiated what's termed a government streamlining body, or Doge, on federal institutions at the start of his term, numerous Chinese observers have viewed US politics through the lens of the Cultural Revolution. Whether it is the mobilisation of young people to execute presidential directives, or purging institutions of those deemed opposition, the president from a Chinese viewpoint has delivered disorder reminiscent of Mao to the US, albeit absent the same levels of violence.

However after the upheaval of the early months of the new administration subsided, a new, distinct type of climate has emerged in the US, which variously seems familiar to numerous Chinese people.

‘The Lighthouse Has Become Less Bright’

The most profound parallel between the US today and China is the suppression on open expression.

A former police officer, now a CCP critic, found himself in the eye of a storm recently, similar to what he’d only previously experienced in China. Deng resided in America since 2019, after escaping China because of pressure from the authorities.

Last fall, after the death of a public figure, Deng tweeted that the individual was a “scumbag”. Like people across the US – many of whom lost their jobs for expressing criticism regarding him – Deng faced significant backlash. Relatives had personal info leaked and he was accused of being a Chinese spy attempting to create division.

“This incident was a real shock. I never imagined that something like this could happen in America – what typically happens in an authoritarian country,” Deng said.

Deng’s backlash originated from online peers, rather than the state, but such of public monitoring bears similarities with the East.

“Regarding targeting those who disagree and starting to surveil public speech on topics that are sensitive … That’s starting to emerge here,” said an academic, an associate professor at Georgia State University. “That’s something that you see in the East now as too,” she added, adding that there were now fears in America of students reporting on teachers, a form of surveillance promoted by the CCP.

Zhang, the Peking University law professor, said that liberal Chinese intellectuals like himself once turned to America for political inspiration, in part because public debate on internal affairs in China is risky. However, “The US isn't a god for progressive Chinese. America’s image has worsened across the board.”

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

Chinese liberals, typically, behind closed doors, skeptical about the nation's governance, now perceive it more acceptable than the US's, he stated. “It’s sort of painful to accept this … but after the pandemic, authorities appears to be pursuing correct policies in environmental protection and developing electric cars and investing in hi-tech,” he noted, while “the West, exemplified by the United States, seems to be in decline.”

The government's acquisition of shares in American firms has prompted comparisons with China, where the line between state and business is often blurred.

On Monday, authorities stated it will take a shareholder in a new company specialising in rare earth processing, after taking similar stakes in additional firms it considers vital to the country's safety. These moves have left some investors nervous that the US is entering a fresh phase of state intervention in private industry.

There are still significant distinctions between Trump’s America and China. In October, multiple media outlets among others declined to agree to a Pentagon policy that demanded reporting solely on approved information. US courts have blocked or reversed numerous Trump’s actions, an action that would be unthinkable in the nation's CCP-controlled judiciary.

An analyst, who established of a consulting firm, specializing in China, commented: “The United States might face its gravest challenge of its history, orders of magnitudes worse than currently, and it would remain freer, open, and liberal than China under Xi.”

Zhang observes that although many intellectuals in China were surprised to see US universities capitulate to government demands regarding DEI policies and open discourse on campus, in China, leading institutions are all state-owned inherently. Administrators, who are selected by the state, “have no liberty refuse. They can’t afford to be disobedient.”

Nevertheless, people in the US are starting to take precautions that were once associated with repressive regimes. An academic at an American college who was previously vocal on bilateral matters declined to speak for this piece. He said: “The truth is, I am scared of the censorship in the US: I genuinely feel more comfortable criticizing China's leader these days than say anything bad