The United States During Trump's Second Term Seems Strangely Recognizable to Observers from the East

As the standup comedian, a rising performer, takes her platform in New York, she's not just thinking about what humor to deliver. She also carefully considers which topics to avoid. “I refrain from directly criticizing the government,” she explained. And when she does, she ensures it's not recorded for online platforms. “I would never publish openly material where I openly disparage authorities … I believe this is a habit from China.”

The comedian, thirty-nine, resided in the Chinese metropolis for almost a decade, leaving in that year. In 2025, she relocated to the US. Upon arrival, she embarked on a frenzy of “overindulging on freedom,” attending talks, demonstrations, and delving into New York’s library system.

However over the past year since Donald Trump was elected again, there's been a noticeable shift in the environment, she says. “In China, I knew where the line was, while in the US I find myself on shifting sands.”

Wang’s concerns reflect a new political reality in America which numerous individuals from China, or those with experience in China, perceive as eerily familiar. Enemies face exclusion. The president demands total allegiance. Journalists are targeted. Institutions are attacked.

The president has openly expressed about his admiration for Xi Jinping, the nation's strongman leader. He's called Xi as a “great guy”. As they agreed a brief ceasefire in the trade war recently, the bonhomie between the two leaders of nations with diametrically opposed political systems was evident. Following years of hope in America that improved relations with the East could assist the growing nation to liberalise, under Trump 2.0, it appears that the US is being pulled in the Chinese direction, instead of the other way around.

“The United States is undergoing a period of cultural revolution,” stated a constitutional law expert, a professor at Peking University. “The top leader, Trump, is attempting to mobilise the masses to sideline or undermine established figures … reminiscent of what happened in China half a century ago.”

Ever since Trump initiated the so-called Department for Government Efficiency, or Doge, on the Washington bureaucracy early on of his term, numerous Chinese observers see American governance via the perspective of China's historical period. Whether it is the rallying of the youth to execute the leader’s will, or cleansing organizations of perceived enemies, the president as viewed from China has brought Mao-style chaos to the US, though without the same levels of force.

However since the upheaval of the early months under Trump has calmed, a new, distinct type of climate has emerged in the US, which in different ways also feels recognizable to many Chinese individuals.

‘The Lighthouse Is Less Bright’

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

A former police officer, now a CCP critic, found himself in a controversy recently, similar to what he once faced in his homeland. Deng has lived in America since 2019, having fled the country due to pressure from officials.

In September, after the death of Charlie Kirk, Deng tweeted that the individual was “despicable”. Like people nationwide – who lost their jobs as a result of expressing criticism about Kirk – he encountered a huge backlash. Relatives was doxed and he was accused of espionage seeking to create division.

“This incident surprised me deeply. I hadn't thought such a thing could happen in the United States – something that should only happen in an authoritarian country,” he commented.

His pile on came from online peers, instead of the government, but that kind of social surveillance bears similarities with China.

“Regarding targeting dissenters and monitoring open discourse about issues deemed controversial … That’s starting to emerge here,” noted Maria Repnikova, a scholar at a US university. “That’s something that you see in China now as too,” she said, adding that there were now fears in America of students reporting on teachers, a form of surveillance that has been encouraged by Chinese authorities.

Zhang, the Peking University law professor, explained that progressive thinkers like himself used to look to the US for political inspiration, in part because public debate on internal affairs in the country is risky. However, “The US is no longer some kind of ideal for progressive Chinese. America’s image has declined generally.”

“We used to see America as the symbol of constitutional democracy, but since the new administration, that guide appears dimmer”.

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 somewhat difficult to acknowledge this … but after the pandemic, the government 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 America, seems to be declining.”

The government's acquisition of shares in American firms has prompted comparisons with China, where the line between state and private industry is frequently unclear.

Recently, authorities stated it would become a shareholder in a new company focused on rare earth processing, after taking similar stakes in other companies deemed essential for national security. These moves have left some investors concerned that the US is entering a new era of state intervention in private industry.

Yet, there remain major differences between Trump’s America and China. Last month, multiple media outlets including the Guardian declined to agree to a Pentagon policy that required reporting solely on approved information. US courts have blocked or overturned many of Trump’s actions, an action that is impossible in China’s party-dominated legal system.

An analyst, who established of Strategy Risks, a China-focused advisory firm, commented: “America might face the worst crisis of all time, orders of magnitudes worse than currently, and it would remain freer, more open, and more liberal than the East under its leader.”

Zhang notes that while many intellectuals in China were shocked to see American colleges yield to official requests regarding diversity and inclusion practices and open discourse on university grounds, in China, the top universities are all state-owned by default. University leaders, which are appointed by the government, “cannot refuse. They can’t afford to be disobedient.”

Still, Americans are starting to adopt measures that were once confined to repressive regimes. One professor at a US university once vocal on bilateral matters declined to be interviewed for this piece. He said: “Honestly, I fear of suppression in the US: I genuinely feel more comfortable criticizing China's leader now than say anything bad