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

When Vickie Wang, an emerging performer, takes the stage in the Big Apple, she is not only considering which jokes to deliver. Additionally, she carefully considers which topics to steer clear of. “I refrain from directly criticizing the government,” she stated. Or if she ventures there, she makes certain it's not captured for social media. “I would never publicly share content where I openly disparage the government … I think this is a learned behavior from China.”

The comedian, thirty-nine, resided in Shanghai for almost ten years, departing in that year. By 2025, she moved to the US. Upon arrival, she dove into an intense period of “overindulging on democracy,” attending lectures, protests, and delving into New York’s library system.

However in the year after Donald Trump was elected again, there has been a “palpable change” in the environment, she says. “Back home, I understood the boundaries, while in the US I'm standing on shifting sands.”

Wang’s concerns reflect an emerging climate in the US which many Chinese, or people who have lived in China, find disturbingly similar. Enemies are ostracised. The president demands absolute loyalty. Reporters face scrutiny. Institutions are attacked.

Trump has openly expressed regarding his respect for Xi Jinping, China’s authoritarian figure. He has described Xi as “fantastic”. When they reached a brief ceasefire in the trade war recently, the bonhomie between both figures of countries with vastly different political systems became clear. Following years of hope in America that closer ties with the East may help the rising power to liberalise, in the current administration, it seems as if the US is shifting in the Chinese direction, rather than the other way around.

“The United States is undergoing an era of societal upheaval,” said Zhang Qianfan, a professor at a top Chinese university. “The top leader, Trump, is attempting to rally the grassroots to sideline or undermine established figures … reminiscent of events in the country decades past.”

Since Trump initiated what's termed Department for Government Efficiency, or Doge, on federal institutions at the start in office, numerous Chinese observers see US politics via the perspective of China's historical period. Whether it is the mobilisation of young people to execute presidential directives, or purging organizations of those deemed opposition, Trump from a Chinese viewpoint has delivered Mao-style chaos to the US, though without the same levels of force.

However since the upheaval of the early months of the new administration subsided, an unfamiliar, distinct type of political atmosphere has settled in the country, which variously seems familiar to many Chinese individuals.

‘The Lighthouse Has Become Dimmer’

The deepest parallel between the US today and China is the crackdown on open expression.

A former police officer, now a CCP critic, ended up in the eye of a storm this year, the likes of which he’d only previously experienced in China. Deng has lived in the US since 2019, having fled the country because of pressure from officials.

Last fall, following the passing of Charlie Kirk, Deng tweeted that the individual was a “scumbag”. Similar to others nationwide – many of whom were fired as a result of expressing criticism regarding him – Deng faced a huge backlash. Relatives had personal info leaked and he was accused of being a Chinese spy seeking to create division.

“This incident surprised me deeply. I never imagined such a thing could happen in America – something that typically happens in a repressive state,” he commented.

His pile on came from fellow social media users, instead of the government, but such of social surveillance also has parallels with China.

“In terms of going after dissenters and monitoring public speech about issues deemed controversial … That’s starting to emerge in the US,” said Maria Repnikova, an associate professor at Georgia State University. “That’s something that you see in the East today as too,” she said, stating that there were now fears in America of students reporting on teachers, a type of monitoring promoted by the CCP.

Zhang, the legal expert, said that progressive thinkers like himself once turned to America for political inspiration, in part because openly discussing internal affairs in China is dangerous. But now, “The US is no longer some kind of ideal for Chinese liberals. America’s image has worsened generally.”

“We used to see the US as the beacon of democratic governance, but since the new administration, that guide seems to have become dimmer”.

Progressive Chinese, typically, behind closed doors, skeptical about the nation's governance, now perceive it more acceptable than America’s, he stated. “It's somewhat difficult to acknowledge this … but after the pandemic, authorities seems to be doing the right thing in environmental protection and promoting EVs and investing in hi-tech,” Zhang said, while “the West, exemplified by the United States, seems to be declining.”

The Trump administration’s acquisition of shares in US companies has prompted parallels with the East, where the line between state and business is often blurred.

Recently, authorities announced it would become a shareholder in a new company specialising in mineral refinement, after taking comparable shares in other companies deemed essential for national security. These moves have made some investors concerned that America is entering a new era of government meddling in the private sector.

Yet, there remain significant distinctions between the US under Trump and the East. In October, multiple media outlets among others refused to sign to a Pentagon policy that demanded they only report on government-authorised information. US courts have blocked or reversed numerous Trump’s actions, something that is unthinkable in China’s party-dominated judiciary.

Isaac Stone Fish, who established of Strategy Risks, a China-focused advisory firm, commented: “The United States could descend into the worst crisis of all time, far more severe than it is now, and it will still be more free, more open, and more liberal than China under Xi.”

Zhang notes that while many intellectuals in the country were surprised to see American colleges yield to official requests concerning diversity and inclusion practices and open discourse on campus, in China, the top universities are all state-owned by default. Administrators, which are selected by the government, “cannot of saying no. They can’t afford defy orders.”

Nevertheless, Americans are beginning to take precautions previously associated with more authoritarian countries. One professor at a US university once vocal on US-China issues refused to be interviewed for this piece. He said: “Honestly, I am scared of the censorship here: I actually feel less afraid to criticise Xi now than say anything bad