The America Under Trump's Second Term Feels Oddly Familiar to Those Watching from China

As the standup comedian, a rising comedic talent, steps onto the stage in the Big Apple, she's not only considering what humor to deliver. Additionally, she carefully considers what subjects to steer clear of. “I refrain from directly attacking the administration,” she stated. And when she does, she ensures it's not recorded for social media. “I'd never publicly share material where I directly criticize the government … I believe it's a learned behavior acquired back home.”

The comedian, thirty-nine, resided in Shanghai for almost a decade, departing in that year. By 2025, she moved to the US. Upon arrival, she embarked on a frenzy of “overindulging on freedom,” attending talks, demonstrations, and exploring New York’s library system.

But over the past year since the president was elected again, there's been a “palpable change” in the atmosphere, she says. “Back home, I knew where the line was, whereas in the US I'm standing on shifting sands.”

Her concerns reflect an emerging climate in America which numerous individuals from China, or people who have lived in the country, perceive as eerily familiar. Enemies face exclusion. The president expects absolute loyalty. Reporters are targeted. Institutions come under fire.

The president has openly expressed about his admiration for Xi Jinping, China’s authoritarian figure. He has described him as “fantastic”. When they reached a brief ceasefire in economic tensions on Thursday, the bonhomie between both figures of nations with diametrically opposed governance models became clear. And after decades of hope 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 the Chinese direction, instead of vice versa.

“The United States is undergoing an era of cultural revolution,” stated Zhang Qianfan, an academic at a top Chinese university. “The top leader, Trump, is attempting to rally the masses in order to sideline or undermine the elite … similar to events in the country decades past.”

Ever since the administration initiated what's termed a government streamlining body, or Doge, on federal institutions early on of his term, numerous Chinese observers see American governance via the perspective of China's historical period. Whether it is the mobilisation of the youth to carry out presidential directives, or purging organizations of perceived enemies, Trump as viewed from China has brought disorder reminiscent of Mao to the US, albeit absent equivalent degrees of force.

However since the turmoil of the initial period of the new administration has calmed, an unfamiliar, distinct type of climate has emerged in the US, which variously seems familiar to numerous Chinese people.

‘The Lighthouse Is Dimmer’

The deepest similarity between the US today and the East is the crackdown on open expression.

Deng Haiyan, turned CCP dissenter, ended up in the eye of a storm recently, the likes of which he once faced in his homeland. Deng resided in the US since 2019, after escaping the country due to harassment from the authorities.

In September, following the passing of Charlie Kirk, he posted that Kirk was “despicable”. Similar to others across the US – many of whom were fired for expressing criticism regarding him – he encountered a huge backlash. His family 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,” Deng said.

His pile on came from online peers, instead of the state, but that kind of social surveillance also has parallels with the East.

“In terms of targeting those who disagree and starting to surveil public speech about issues deemed controversial … It's appearing in the US,” noted an academic, an associate professor at Georgia State University. “That’s something that you see in the East today as too,” she added, stating that concerns are rising in the US of students reporting on educators, a type of surveillance promoted by the CCP.

The professor, the Peking University law professor, said that progressive thinkers such as him used to look to America for political inspiration, since public debate on internal affairs in China is risky. However, “The US is no longer a god for progressive Chinese. The US's reputation has worsened across the board.”

“We once viewed America as the beacon of democratic governance, but after Trump took power, that guide appears less luminous”.

Chinese liberals, who are often, behind closed doors, skeptical about the nation's governance, now perceive it less objectionable than America’s, he stated. “It's somewhat difficult to acknowledge this … but post-COVID, authorities seems to be doing correct policies in improving the environment and promoting EVs and tech investment,” he noted, while “the West, exemplified by America, seems to be declining.”

The government's purchase of stakes in US companies has also drawn parallels with the East, where the distinction between state and private industry is frequently unclear.

On Monday, the US government stated it will take an investor in a new company focused on rare earth processing, after taking similar stakes in additional firms deemed vital to national security. These moves have made certain stakeholders concerned that the US is entering a fresh phase of government meddling in the private sector.

Yet, there remain major differences between the US under Trump and the East. Last month, multiple media outlets among others declined to agree to a Pentagon policy that demanded they only report on approved information. American judiciary have halted or reversed many of presidential measures, something that would be unthinkable in the nation's party-dominated judiciary.

Isaac Stone Fish, who established of Strategy Risks, specializing in China, said: “The United States might face the worst crisis of all time, orders of magnitudes worse than it is now, and it would remain freer, more open, and more liberal than China under Xi.”

The professor observes that while many intellectuals in China were shocked to see US universities capitulate to official requests concerning DEI policies and free speech on university grounds, in China, the top universities are all state-owned inherently. Administrators, who are appointed by the government, “cannot refuse. They can’t afford defy orders.”

Still, Americans are starting to take precautions previously confined to more authoritarian countries. An academic at an American college once vocal on bilateral matters declined to be interviewed for this piece. He stated: “The truth is, I fear of suppression here: I genuinely feel less afraid criticizing China's leader these days than say anything bad