As Vickie Wang, a rising comedic talent, takes her platform in New York, she is not only thinking about what humor to tell. Additionally, she carefully considers which topics to avoid. “I refrain from openly criticizing the government,” she stated. Or if she ventures there, she ensures it isn't recorded for online platforms. “I would never publicly share material where I directly criticize authorities … I think this is a learned behavior from China.”
The comedian, thirty-nine, lived in the Chinese metropolis for almost a decade, departing in 2022. In 2025, she moved to the US. When she got there, she embarked on an intense period of “overindulging on democracy,” attending talks, protests, and delving into the city's public library.
But over the past year since the president returned to office again, there has been a noticeable shift in the environment, she notes. “In China, I knew where the line was, while in the US I find myself on unstable ground.”
Wang’s concerns reflect an emerging political reality in the US which many Chinese, or those who have lived in China, perceive as disturbingly familiar. Opponents face exclusion. The leader expects total allegiance. Journalists are targeted. Institutions are attacked.
The president has openly expressed regarding his respect for Xi Jinping, China’s authoritarian figure. He's called him as “fantastic”. As they agreed a brief ceasefire in economic tensions on Thursday, the bonhomie between both figures of countries with diametrically opposed political systems was evident. Following years of optimism in America that improved relations with the East could assist the rising power become more open, in the current administration, it appears as if America is being pulled in China's path, instead of vice versa.
“The United States is undergoing an era of societal upheaval,” said a constitutional law expert, an academic at Peking University. “The president, Donald Trump, is trying to rally the masses in order to marginalize or weaken established figures … reminiscent of events in the country half a century ago.”
Since Trump unleashed what's termed Department for Government Efficiency, or the agency, on federal institutions at the start of his term, many in China have viewed American governance through the lens of the Cultural Revolution. Whether it is the rallying of the youth to execute the leader’s will, or purging institutions of those deemed opposition, the president as viewed from China has delivered disorder reminiscent of Mao to the US, albeit without the same levels of force.
However since the turmoil of the early months of the new administration has calmed, a new, distinct type of climate has emerged in the country, which variously seems recognizable to many Chinese people.
‘The Lighthouse Is Dimmer’
The most profound parallel between the US today and China is the suppression on free speech.
Deng Haiyan, turned Chinese Communist party dissenter, ended up in a controversy this year, similar to what he once faced in his homeland. He has lived in America since 2019, after escaping the country because of harassment from officials.
In September, following the passing of Charlie Kirk, Deng tweeted that the individual was a “scumbag”. Like people nationwide – many of whom were fired as a result of making negative comments about Kirk – he encountered significant backlash. Relatives had personal info leaked and he was accused of espionage attempting to divide the US.
“This incident surprised me deeply. I hadn't thought such a thing would occur in America – what typically happens in a repressive state,” Deng said.
His pile on originated from online peers, instead of the state, but such of social surveillance also has parallels with China.
“Regarding targeting those who disagree and monitoring public speech about issues that are sensitive … It's appearing here,” said Maria Repnikova, an associate professor at Georgia State University. “That’s something observed in the East now as too,” she added, adding that there were now fears in America of students reporting on teachers, a type of surveillance that has been encouraged by the CCP.
Zhang, the legal expert, said that liberal Chinese intellectuals like himself used to look to America for ideals, in part because openly discussing domestic politics in the country is dangerous. However, “The US isn't a ideal for progressive Chinese. America’s image has worsened across the board.”
“We once viewed the US as the beacon of constitutional democracy, but since the new administration, this lighthouse appears dimmer”.
Progressive Chinese, typically, behind closed doors, critical of China’s political system, are increasingly finding it less objectionable than America’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 investing in hi-tech,” he noted, while “Western nations, as represented by the United States, seems to be declining.”
The government's purchase of stakes in US companies has prompted comparisons with the East, where the distinction between state and private industry is frequently unclear.
Recently, the US government stated it will take an investor in a startup focused on rare earth processing, following comparable shares in other companies it considers vital to national security. These moves have left certain stakeholders concerned that America is embarking on a fresh phase of state intervention in the private sector.
Yet, there remain significant distinctions between Trump’s America and China. Last month, several news organisations among others refused to sign to a defense department rule that demanded reporting solely on government-authorised news. US courts have halted or overturned numerous Trump’s actions, an action that would be impossible in China’s party-dominated judiciary.
Isaac Stone Fish, 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 it is now, and it will still be more free, more open, and more liberal than the East under its leader.”
The professor notes that while many intellectuals in the country were shocked to see American colleges yield to government demands concerning DEI policies and open discourse on university grounds, in China, the top universities are publicly controlled inherently. Administrators, who are appointed by the state, “cannot refuse. They can’t afford to be disobedient.”
Nevertheless, Americans are starting to adopt measures that were once associated with repressive regimes. One professor at an American college once vocal on US-China issues declined to be interviewed for this article. He stated: “Honestly, I fear of the censorship here: I genuinely feel more comfortable to criticise Xi now than say anything bad
