The United States During Trump's Second Term Seems Oddly Familiar to Those Watching from China

As Vickie Wang, an emerging performer, steps onto the stage in New York, she's not only thinking about what humor to tell. She also weighs which topics to steer clear of. “I refrain from openly criticizing the administration,” she stated. And when she ventures there, she makes certain it's not recorded for online platforms. “I'd never publicly share material where I directly criticize authorities … I believe it's a learned behavior from China.”

The comedian, 39, resided in the Chinese metropolis for almost ten years, departing in that year. In 2025, she moved to America. Upon arrival, she dove into an intense period of “overindulging on democracy,” attending talks, demonstrations, and delving into New York’s library system.

But in the year since the president was elected for the second time, there has been a noticeable shift in the atmosphere, she says. “Back home, I understood the boundaries, whereas in the US I'm standing on shifting sands.”

Her fears mirror an emerging climate in the US which numerous individuals from China, or people with experience in the country, find eerily familiar. Opponents face exclusion. The leader demands total allegiance. Reporters face scrutiny. Establishments come under fire.

The president has openly expressed about his admiration for Xi Jinping, China’s authoritarian figure. He has described Xi as a “great guy”. As they agreed a brief ceasefire in economic tensions recently, the camaraderie between both figures of nations with diametrically opposed governance models became clear. And after decades of optimism in America that improved relations with China may help the growing nation to liberalise, in the current administration, it seems as if the US is shifting in China's path, instead of vice versa.

“America is experiencing a period of societal upheaval,” stated Zhang Qianfan, a professor at a top Chinese university. “The top leader, Trump, is trying to mobilise the grassroots to sideline or weaken the elite … similar to events in China decades past.”

Since the administration unleashed what's termed Department for Government Efficiency, or Doge, on federal institutions at the start in office, many in China see American governance through the lens of China's historical period. Whether it is the mobilisation of young people to execute presidential directives, or purging organizations of perceived enemies, the president as viewed from China has brought Mao-style chaos to America, though absent equivalent degrees of force.

However after the upheaval of the early months under Trump subsided, a new, different kind of climate has settled in the country, which in different ways seems recognizable to many Chinese people.

‘The Beacon Is Less Bright’

The most profound parallel between Trump’s America and the East is the crackdown on free speech.

A former police officer, now a CCP critic, ended up in a controversy recently, similar to what he once faced in China. Deng has lived in the US for several years, after escaping the country because of harassment from officials.

In September, after the death of a public figure, Deng tweeted that Kirk was a “scumbag”. Like people across the US – who were fired as a result of expressing criticism about Kirk – Deng faced significant backlash. His family had personal info leaked and he was accused of espionage attempting to create division.

“This incident was a real shock. I hadn't thought that something like this could happen in the United States – something that should only happen in an authoritarian country,” Deng said.

His pile on came from fellow social media users, rather than the state, but such of social surveillance bears similarities with China.

“Regarding targeting dissenters and monitoring open discourse about issues deemed controversial … It's appearing here,” said Maria Repnikova, a scholar at Georgia State University. “This is observed in the East today as well,” she said, adding that there were now fears in the US of pupils informing against educators, a form of monitoring promoted by Chinese authorities.

The professor, the legal expert, said that liberal Chinese intellectuals like himself used to look to America for political inspiration, since public debate on domestic politics in the country is dangerous. However, “America isn't a ideal for progressive Chinese. America’s image has worsened across the board.”

“We once viewed America as the symbol of democratic governance, but after Trump took power, this lighthouse appears less luminous”.

Progressive Chinese, who are often, at least in private, critical of China’s political system, are increasingly finding it less objectionable than the US's, he stated. “It's somewhat painful to accept this reality … but after the pandemic, authorities appears to be pursuing correct policies in environmental protection and promoting EVs and tech investment,” Zhang said, while “the West, as represented by the United States, seems to be in decline.”

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

On Monday, the US government announced it will take a shareholder in a startup specialising in mineral refinement, after taking similar stakes in additional firms it considers essential for the country's safety. These moves have made certain stakeholders nervous that the US is entering a fresh phase of state intervention in the private sector.

There are still major differences between the US under Trump and China. Last month, multiple media outlets including the Guardian refused to sign to a defense department rule that required reporting solely on approved news. American judiciary have blocked or overturned many of Trump’s actions, something that would be unthinkable in the nation's party-dominated legal system.

An analyst, who established of a consulting firm, a China-focused advisory firm, commented: “America might face the worst crisis of its history, orders of magnitudes worse than it is now, and it would remain more free, more open, and more liberal than China under Xi.”

Zhang observes that although many intellectuals in China were shocked to see American colleges capitulate to government demands regarding diversity and inclusion practices and free speech on campus, in China, leading institutions are publicly controlled inherently. University leaders, who are appointed by the state, “cannot refuse. They can’t afford to be disobedient.”

Nevertheless, Americans are beginning to take precautions that were once confined to repressive regimes. An academic at an American college who was previously outspoken on bilateral matters declined to speak for this article. He stated: “Honestly, I fear of suppression in the US: I actually feel more comfortable criticizing China's leader now than say anything bad