When the standup comedian, a rising performer, steps onto her platform in the Big Apple, she's not only thinking about which jokes to deliver. She also carefully considers what subjects to steer clear of. “I refrain from directly criticizing the administration,” she explained. And when she does, she makes certain it isn't captured for social media. “I would never publish openly content where I openly disparage the government … I think this is a habit from China.”
The comedian, 39, lived in the Chinese metropolis for almost a decade, leaving in that year. In 2025, she moved to America. Upon arrival, she dove into a frenzy of “revenge bingeing on freedom,” attending talks, demonstrations, and delving into New York’s public library.
However in the year after Donald Trump was elected for the second time, there has been a “palpable change” in the atmosphere, she notes. “In China, I understood where the line was, whereas in the US I'm standing on shifting sands.”
Her concerns mirror a new political reality in the US which numerous individuals from China, or people who have lived in the country, find disturbingly similar. Opponents face exclusion. The leader expects absolute loyalty. Reporters are targeted. Institutions are attacked.
The president has openly expressed about his admiration for Xi Jinping, China’s authoritarian figure. He has described him as a “great guy”. As they agreed a brief ceasefire in economic tensions on Thursday, the camaraderie between both figures of nations with vastly different political systems was evident. And after decades of hope in America that improved relations with China may help the growing nation become more open, under Trump 2.0, it seems that America is being pulled in the Chinese direction, instead of vice versa.
“America is experiencing an era of cultural revolution,” said a constitutional law expert, an academic at Peking University. “The top leader, Donald Trump, is attempting to mobilise the grassroots to marginalize or weaken the elite … reminiscent of what happened in China half a century ago.”
Ever since the administration unleashed the so-called Department for Government Efficiency, or the agency, on the Washington bureaucracy at the start of his term, many in China see American governance via the perspective of the Cultural Revolution. Be it the rallying of young people to carry out presidential directives, or purging organizations of perceived enemies, Trump from a Chinese viewpoint has brought Mao-style chaos to America, though without 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 settled in the country, which variously also feels familiar to numerous Chinese people.
‘The Lighthouse Has Become Less Bright’
The deepest similarity between Trump’s America and China is the crackdown on open expression.
Deng Haiyan, now a CCP dissenter, ended up in the eye of a storm recently, similar to what he once faced in his homeland. He has lived in the US for several years, having fled the country due to pressure from the authorities.
In September, following the passing of a public figure, he posted that Kirk was a “scumbag”. Similar to others nationwide – many of whom lost their jobs as a result of expressing criticism regarding him – Deng faced a huge backlash. His family had personal info leaked and he faced allegations of espionage seeking to divide the US.
“This incident was a real shock. I never imagined that something like this would occur in the United States – something that typically happens in a repressive state,” Deng said.
Deng’s backlash originated from online peers, instead of the state, but that kind of social surveillance bears parallels with China.
“Regarding going after dissenters and starting to surveil public speech about issues deemed controversial … It's appearing in the US,” said an academic, an associate professor at Georgia State University. “This is that you see in the East today as too,” she added, adding that there were now fears in the US of students reporting on educators, a type of monitoring promoted by the CCP.
Zhang, the legal expert, explained that progressive thinkers like himself used to look to America for ideals, since openly discussing internal affairs in China is dangerous. But now, “America is no longer some kind of god for Chinese liberals. The US's reputation has declined across the board.”
“We once viewed America as the symbol of constitutional democracy, but after Trump took power, this lighthouse seems to have become dimmer”.
Chinese liberals, who are often, behind closed doors, skeptical about China’s political system, are increasingly finding it more acceptable than the US's, he stated. “It’s sort of painful to accept this … but post-COVID, the government appears to be pursuing correct policies in environmental protection and promoting EVs and tech investment,” he noted, while “the West, as represented by America, appear in decline.”
The government's acquisition of stakes in American firms has also drawn comparisons with the East, where the line between government and private industry is often blurred.
Recently, authorities stated it will take an investor in a new company focused on rare earth processing, after taking comparable shares in other companies it considers essential for national security. The deals have left some investors concerned that the US is entering a fresh phase of government meddling in the private sector.
There are still significant distinctions between Trump’s America and China. Last month, several news organisations among others declined to agree to a defense department rule that demanded they only report on approved information. US courts have halted or overturned many of presidential measures, an action that is impossible in China’s party-dominated legal system.
Isaac Stone Fish, who established of a consulting firm, specializing in China, commented: “The United States could descend into its gravest challenge of all time, orders of magnitudes worse than it is now, and it will still be more free, more open, and liberal than China under Xi.”
The professor observes that while numerous scholars in China were shocked to see American colleges yield to government demands concerning DEI policies and open discourse on campus, in China, the top universities are publicly controlled inherently. Administrators, which are appointed by the government, “have no liberty refuse. They can’t afford defy orders.”
Nevertheless, Americans are beginning to adopt measures that were once associated with more authoritarian countries. An academic at an American college who was previously vocal on US-China issues refused to speak for this article. He stated: “Honestly, I am scared of suppression here: I actually feel more comfortable to criticise Xi these days than say anything bad
