The America During Trump's Second Term Feels Strangely Familiar to Those Watching from China

When Vickie Wang, a rising comedic talent, steps onto her platform in New York, she is not just thinking about what humor to tell. Additionally, she carefully considers which topics to avoid. “I refrain from openly criticizing the government,” she stated. And when she ventures there, she makes certain it isn't recorded for online platforms. “I'd never publicly share content where I openly disparage authorities … I think this is a habit acquired back home.”

The comedian, 39, lived in the Chinese metropolis for almost ten years, departing in that year. By 2025, she moved to the US. When she got there, she embarked on an intense period of “overindulging on democracy,” attending lectures, protests, and exploring New York’s library system.

But in the year after the president was elected again, there's been a noticeable shift in the environment, she notes. “Back home, I knew the boundaries, whereas in the US I find myself on unstable ground.”

Her fears mirror a new climate in the US which many Chinese, or people with experience in the country, find disturbingly similar. Opponents are ostracised. The leader expects absolute loyalty. Journalists are targeted. Institutions come under fire.

Trump has not been shy regarding his respect for Xi Jinping, the nation's strongman leader. He has described Xi as “fantastic”. As they agreed a temporary truce in the trade war recently, the bonhomie between both figures of countries with vastly different political systems became clear. And after decades of optimism in America that improved relations with the East may help the rising power become more open, in the current administration, it appears that America is shifting in China's path, rather than vice versa.

“America is undergoing a period of cultural revolution,” said a constitutional law expert, a professor at Peking University. “The president, Trump, is attempting to mobilise the grassroots in order to marginalize or undermine 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 in office, numerous Chinese observers see US politics via the perspective of the Cultural Revolution. Whether it is the rallying of young people to execute presidential directives, or purging organizations of those deemed opposition, Trump as viewed from China has delivered disorder reminiscent of Mao to the US, though without equivalent degrees of force.

However after the turmoil of the initial period under Trump subsided, a new, distinct type of political atmosphere has settled in the country, which in different ways seems recognizable to numerous Chinese individuals.

‘The Lighthouse Has Become Dimmer’

The deepest parallel between Trump’s America and China is the crackdown on free speech.

A former police officer, turned CCP critic, found himself in a controversy this year, the likes of which he once faced in his homeland. Deng has lived in America for several years, having fled China due to harassment from officials.

Last fall, after the death of Charlie Kirk, Deng tweeted that Kirk was “despicable”. Like people nationwide – many of whom were fired for making negative comments regarding him – Deng faced a huge backlash. Relatives was doxed and he was accused of being a Chinese spy attempting to divide the US.

“That event surprised me deeply. I never imagined that something like this could happen in America – what should only happen in an authoritarian country,” he commented.

His pile on came from fellow social media users, rather than the state, but such of public monitoring also has similarities with the East.

“Regarding targeting those who disagree and starting to surveil public speech about issues that are sensitive … That’s starting to emerge here,” noted Maria Repnikova, a scholar at a US university. “This is that you see in China now as well,” she said, stating that there were now fears in the US of students reporting on educators, a form of surveillance that has been encouraged by the CCP.

Zhang, the Peking University law professor, said that progressive thinkers such as him used to look to America for ideals, since openly discussing internal affairs in the country is risky. But now, “America isn't a ideal for progressive Chinese. The US's reputation has worsened across the board.”

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

Progressive Chinese, who are often, behind closed doors, skeptical about the nation's governance, are increasingly finding it more acceptable than America’s, he stated. “It’s sort of painful to accept this … but post-COVID, the government seems to be doing the right thing in improving the environment and promoting EVs and tech investment,” Zhang said, while “the West, as represented by the United States, appear declining.”

The Trump administration’s purchase of stakes in American firms has prompted comparisons with the East, where the distinction between government and private industry is often blurred.

Recently, the US government announced it will take a shareholder in a startup focused on rare earth processing, after taking similar stakes in other companies it considers essential for the country's safety. The deals have made certain stakeholders nervous that the US is embarking on a fresh phase of state intervention in the private sector.

There are still significant distinctions between the US under Trump and China. In October, several news organisations among others declined to agree to a Pentagon policy that demanded they only report on approved information. American judiciary have halted or overturned many of presidential measures, an action that would be unthinkable in China’s party-dominated legal system.

An analyst, who established of Strategy Risks, a China-focused advisory firm, said: “America might face its gravest challenge of its history, far more severe than currently, and it will still be freer, more open, and liberal than the East under its leader.”

The professor observes that while many intellectuals in the country were shocked to see US universities yield to official requests regarding DEI policies and open discourse on campus, in the East, leading institutions are all state-owned inherently. University leaders, who are appointed by the government, “have no liberty refuse. They can’t afford defy orders.”

Nevertheless, people in the US are starting to take precautions previously associated with repressive regimes. One professor at a US university who was previously vocal on US-China issues declined to speak for this article. He stated: “The truth is, I fear of the censorship in the US: I genuinely feel more comfortable criticizing China's leader now than say anything bad