When the standup comedian, a rising performer, steps onto her platform in New York, she's not only considering what humor to tell. Additionally, she carefully considers which topics to avoid. “I refrain from directly criticizing the administration,” she explained. Or if she does, she makes certain it isn't recorded for social media. “I'd never publicly share content in which I directly criticize the government … I believe this is a learned behavior from China.”
The comedian, 39, resided in Shanghai for almost a decade, departing in that year. By 2025, she relocated to America. Upon arrival, she embarked on a frenzy of “overindulging on democracy,” attending talks, protests, and delving into the city's library system.
However in the year since the president was elected for the second time, there's been a noticeable shift in the atmosphere, she says. “In China, I knew where the line was, whereas here I'm standing on shifting sands.”
Her concerns mirror a new political reality in the US which numerous individuals from China, or people with experience in the country, perceive as eerily familiar. Enemies face exclusion. The president demands absolute loyalty. Journalists face scrutiny. Institutions come under fire.
Trump has not been shy about his admiration for Xi Jinping, China’s authoritarian figure. He has described him as a “great guy”. As they agreed a temporary truce in economic tensions on Thursday, the bonhomie between the two leaders of countries with vastly different governance models became clear. And after decades of hope in the US that closer ties with the East could assist the growing nation to liberalise, in the current administration, it appears as if America is being pulled in the Chinese direction, instead of the other way around.
“The United States is experiencing an era of societal upheaval,” said a constitutional law expert, an academic at a top Chinese university. “The top leader, Trump, is attempting to mobilise the grassroots to marginalize or weaken the elite … reminiscent of what happened in the country decades past.”
Ever since the administration unleashed the so-called Department for Government Efficiency, or the agency, on federal institutions at the start in office, many in China see US politics via the perspective of China's historical period. Be it the rallying of young people to execute the leader’s will, or purging organizations of those deemed opposition, the president as viewed from China has brought Mao-style chaos to America, though absent the same levels of force.
But after the upheaval of the early months under Trump subsided, a new, distinct type of political atmosphere has settled in the US, which in different ways also feels recognizable to many Chinese people.
‘The Beacon Has Become Less Bright’
The most profound similarity between the US today and the East is the crackdown on open expression.
A former police officer, turned Chinese Communist party critic, found himself in the eye of a storm this year, similar to what he’d only previously experienced in his homeland. He has lived in America for several years, having fled China because of pressure from the authorities.
In September, following the passing of Charlie Kirk, Deng tweeted that Kirk was a “scumbag”. Similar to others across the US – many of whom lost their jobs for expressing criticism about Kirk – he encountered significant backlash. Relatives was doxed and he faced allegations of being a Chinese spy attempting to create division.
“This incident surprised me deeply. I hadn't thought such a thing would occur in the United States – something that typically happens in a repressive state,” Deng said.
His backlash came from fellow social media users, instead of the state, but that kind of public monitoring also has parallels with China.
“In terms of going after those who disagree and monitoring public speech about issues that are sensitive … That’s starting to emerge here,” said an academic, an associate professor at a US university. “This is observed in the East today as well,” she said, adding that concerns are rising in America of students reporting on educators, a form of surveillance that has been encouraged by Chinese authorities.
Zhang, the legal expert, explained that progressive thinkers such as him used to look to America for political inspiration, since openly discussing domestic politics in the country is risky. But now, “The US is no longer some kind of god for progressive Chinese. America’s image has declined across the board.”
“We once viewed America as the symbol of democratic governance, but since the new administration, this lighthouse seems to have become less luminous”.
Chinese liberals, who are often, behind closed doors, skeptical about the nation's governance, are increasingly finding it more acceptable than the US's, he stated. “It’s sort of painful to accept this … but after the pandemic, the government seems to be doing the right thing in environmental protection and developing electric cars and investing in hi-tech,” Zhang said, while “the West, exemplified by America, seems to be in decline.”
The Trump administration’s acquisition of shares in US companies has also drawn parallels with the East, where the line between state and private industry is often blurred.
Recently, the US government stated it would become an investor in a new company focused on rare earth processing, after taking similar stakes in other companies deemed essential for national security. These moves have left certain stakeholders nervous that the US is embarking on a fresh phase of government meddling in the private sector.
Yet, there remain significant distinctions between Trump’s America and China. Last month, multiple media outlets including the Guardian refused to sign to a Pentagon policy that demanded reporting solely on government-authorised news. US courts have blocked or overturned many of Trump’s actions, something that is impossible in the nation's CCP-controlled legal system.
Isaac Stone Fish, the founder of a consulting firm, specializing in China, said: “America could descend into its gravest challenge of its history, far more severe than it is now, and it will still be freer, open, and liberal than the East under its leader.”
The professor notes that while many intellectuals in the country were surprised to see American colleges capitulate to government demands regarding DEI policies and open discourse on university grounds, in the East, the top universities are all state-owned by default. Administrators, who are appointed by the state, “have no liberty of saying no. They dare not defy orders.”
Nevertheless, people in the US are beginning to take precautions that were once confined to repressive regimes. An academic at a US university who was previously vocal on US-China issues declined to speak for this piece. He stated: “The truth is, I am scared of suppression here: I genuinely feel more comfortable to criticise Xi now than say anything bad
