As the standup comedian, an emerging comedic talent, takes the stage in New York, she's not only thinking about which jokes to deliver. Additionally, she carefully considers what subjects to avoid. “I don't engage in directly attacking the administration,” she stated. Or if she does, she makes certain it isn't recorded for social media. “I'd never publicly share material in which I directly criticize the government … I believe this is a habit from China.”
The comedian, 39, resided in Shanghai for nearly a decade, departing in 2022. By 2025, she relocated to America. When she got there, she dove into an intense period of “overindulging on democracy,” going to talks, protests, and exploring the city's library system.
But over the past year after the president returned to office for the second time, there has been a noticeable shift in the environment, she notes. “In China, I knew the boundaries, while in the US I'm standing on unstable ground.”
Her fears mirror an emerging political reality in America which numerous individuals from China, or those with experience in China, perceive as eerily similar. Enemies face exclusion. The leader demands total allegiance. Journalists face scrutiny. Establishments are attacked.
Trump has openly expressed regarding his respect for Xi Jinping, China’s authoritarian figure. He has described Xi as a “great guy”. When they reached a brief ceasefire in economic tensions on Thursday, the camaraderie between the two leaders of nations with diametrically opposed governance models was evident. And after decades of hope in the US that closer ties with China may help the rising power become more open, under Trump 2.0, it seems that the US is shifting in the Chinese direction, rather than the other way around.
“America is experiencing an era of societal upheaval,” said Zhang Qianfan, a professor at Peking University. “The top leader, Trump, is attempting to mobilise the grassroots to marginalize or weaken the elite … reminiscent of what happened in China decades past.”
Ever since Trump initiated what's termed a government streamlining body, or Doge, on the Washington bureaucracy at the start in office, many in China see US politics via the perspective of the Cultural Revolution. Whether it is the rallying of young people to execute the leader’s will, or purging institutions of perceived enemies, Trump from a Chinese viewpoint has delivered Mao-style chaos to America, though without equivalent degrees of force.
But after the upheaval of the early months of the new administration subsided, an unfamiliar, different kind of climate has settled in the country, which in different ways seems recognizable to numerous Chinese people.
‘The Beacon Has Become Dimmer’
The most profound parallel between the US today and China is the suppression on free speech.
A former police officer, turned CCP dissenter, found himself in a controversy this year, similar to what he’d only previously experienced in China. Deng has lived in America since 2019, having fled China because of harassment from the authorities.
Last fall, following the passing of Charlie Kirk, he posted that Kirk was a “scumbag”. Similar to others nationwide – many of whom were fired for making negative comments about Kirk – Deng faced significant backlash. His family was doxed and he was accused of espionage attempting to divide the US.
“That event surprised me deeply. I never imagined such a thing would occur in America – something that should only happen in a repressive state,” he commented.
Deng’s pile on came from online peers, rather than the state, but that kind of public monitoring bears similarities with the East.
“Regarding going after those who disagree and starting to surveil public speech on topics that are sensitive … That’s starting to emerge in the US,” noted Maria Repnikova, a scholar at Georgia State University. “That’s something that you see in China now as well,” she added, adding that concerns are rising in America of pupils informing against teachers, a form of monitoring that has been encouraged by Chinese authorities.
Zhang, the legal expert, said that liberal Chinese intellectuals like himself used to look to the US for ideals, since openly discussing domestic politics in the country is risky. But now, “America is no longer a god for progressive Chinese. The US's reputation has worsened across the board.”
“We once viewed the US as the symbol of constitutional democracy, but since the new administration, that guide seems to have become dimmer”.
Chinese liberals, typically, behind closed doors, skeptical about China’s political system, now perceive it more acceptable than the US's, he stated. “It's somewhat difficult to acknowledge this … but post-COVID, the government seems to be doing correct policies in improving the environment and developing electric cars and tech investment,” he noted, while “Western nations, as represented by America, seems to be in decline.”
The government's acquisition of stakes in American firms has prompted comparisons with the East, where the distinction between state and business is frequently unclear.
Recently, authorities stated it would become a shareholder in a startup specialising in rare earth processing, after taking comparable shares in other companies deemed vital to the country's safety. These moves have left some investors nervous that America is entering a fresh phase of government meddling in the private sector.
There are still major differences between the US under Trump and the East. In October, multiple media outlets among others refused to sign to a Pentagon policy that required they only report on government-authorised information. American judiciary have halted or overturned many of Trump’s actions, an action that would be unthinkable in the nation's party-dominated judiciary.
An analyst, who established of a consulting firm, specializing in China, commented: “The United States could descend into the worst crisis of all time, far more severe than currently, and it will still be freer, more open, and liberal than China under Xi.”
The professor observes that although many intellectuals in China were shocked to see US universities capitulate to official requests concerning diversity and inclusion practices and free speech on campus, in the East, leading institutions are all state-owned inherently. Administrators, who are selected by the government, “have no liberty refuse. They can’t afford defy orders.”
Still, people in the US are beginning to take precautions previously confined to repressive regimes. An academic at a US university once vocal on bilateral matters refused to be interviewed for this piece. He said: “Honestly, I fear of suppression here: I actually feel less afraid to criticise Xi these days than say anything bad
