Trump's United States Under the New Administration Feels Oddly Recognizable to Observers from China

When the standup comedian, an emerging comedic talent, takes the stage in the Big Apple, she's not only considering which jokes to tell. Additionally, she weighs 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 authorities … I believe it's a learned behavior acquired back home.”

Wang, 39, lived in Shanghai for nearly ten years, leaving in that year. By 2025, she moved to America. Upon arrival, she embarked on a frenzy of “revenge bingeing on freedom,” going to talks, demonstrations, and delving into New York’s library system.

But in the year after Donald Trump was elected for the second time, there's been a noticeable shift in the atmosphere, she says. “Back home, I understood where the line was, whereas in the US I'm standing on unstable ground.”

Her concerns mirror a new political reality in America which many Chinese, or those with experience in China, perceive as eerily familiar. Opponents face exclusion. The leader demands total allegiance. Reporters are targeted. Institutions come under fire.

Trump has not been shy regarding his respect for Xi Jinping, the nation's authoritarian figure. He has described him as a “great guy”. As they agreed a temporary truce in the trade war recently, the camaraderie between both figures of nations with vastly different political systems became clear. Following years of optimism in the US that closer ties with the East could assist the growing nation become more open, in the current administration, it appears as if America is shifting in China's path, instead of the other way around.

“The United States is undergoing an era of societal upheaval,” said Zhang Qianfan, an academic at Peking University. “The top leader, Trump, is trying to rally the masses to sideline or undermine established figures … reminiscent of what happened in China half a century ago.”

Since Trump initiated the so-called Department for Government Efficiency, or the agency, on federal institutions at the start of his term, many in China have viewed US politics via the perspective of China's historical period. Be it the mobilisation of young people to carry out the leader’s will, or purging institutions of those deemed opposition, the president from a Chinese viewpoint has delivered disorder reminiscent of Mao to the US, albeit absent equivalent degrees of violence.

But after the upheaval of the initial period of the new administration has calmed, an unfamiliar, distinct type of climate has settled in the US, which in different ways seems recognizable to numerous Chinese individuals.

‘The Lighthouse Has Become Dimmer’

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

Deng Haiyan, turned CCP dissenter, found himself in the eye of a storm recently, similar to what he’d only previously experienced in China. He resided in the US for several years, having fled the country because of harassment from the authorities.

In September, following the passing of Charlie Kirk, Deng tweeted that the individual was a “scumbag”. Like people nationwide – who were fired as a result of expressing criticism about Kirk – Deng faced a huge backlash. His family had personal info leaked and he faced allegations of espionage seeking to divide the US.

“That event surprised me deeply. I hadn't thought that something like this would occur in the United States – what should only happen in an authoritarian country,” Deng said.

His pile on came from online peers, rather than the government, but that kind of public monitoring also has parallels with China.

“Regarding targeting those who disagree and starting to surveil public speech on topics that are sensitive … It's appearing here,” noted Maria Repnikova, an associate professor at a US university. “This is observed in the East today as too,” she added, adding that concerns are rising in America of students reporting on teachers, a form of monitoring that has been encouraged by the CCP.

Zhang, the legal expert, explained that liberal Chinese intellectuals such as him once turned to the US for political inspiration, since public debate on internal affairs in the country is dangerous. But now, “America isn't some kind of god for progressive Chinese. The US's reputation has worsened across the board.”

“We used to see America as the symbol of democratic governance, but after Trump took power, that guide seems to have become dimmer”.

Progressive Chinese, typically, behind closed doors, critical of the nation's governance, are increasingly finding it less objectionable than the US's, Zhang said. “It's somewhat painful to accept this … but after the pandemic, authorities seems to be doing the right thing in environmental protection and developing electric cars and tech investment,” Zhang said, while “the West, exemplified by America, appear in decline.”

The government's acquisition of shares in US companies has prompted comparisons with the East, where the line between government and business is frequently unclear.

Recently, authorities announced it will take a shareholder in a new company specialising in mineral refinement, following similar stakes in other companies deemed essential for national security. These moves have left some investors concerned that America is entering a fresh phase of government meddling in the private sector.

There are still significant distinctions between the US under Trump and China. In October, multiple media outlets among others refused to sign to a Pentagon policy that demanded reporting solely on approved information. US courts have blocked or reversed numerous Trump’s actions, something that is unthinkable in China’s party-dominated judiciary.

Isaac Stone Fish, the founder of a consulting firm, specializing in China, said: “America could descend into its gravest challenge of its history, far more severe than currently, and it will still be freer, open, and more liberal than the East under its leader.”

Zhang observes that although numerous scholars in China were surprised to see US universities capitulate to government demands concerning DEI policies and free speech on university grounds, in China, the top universities are all state-owned by default. University leaders, who are selected by the government, “have no liberty of saying no. They dare not to be disobedient.”

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 refused to be interviewed for this piece. He stated: “Honestly, I fear of suppression in the US: I actually feel less afraid criticizing China's leader these days than say anything bad