As the standup comedian, an emerging comedic talent, steps onto the stage in the Big Apple, she is not just thinking about what humor to deliver. Additionally, she weighs which topics to steer clear of. “I refrain from directly criticizing the administration,” she stated. And when she does, she makes certain it isn't recorded for online platforms. “I'd never publicly share content in which I openly disparage the government … I believe this is a learned behavior from China.”
The comedian, thirty-nine, lived in the Chinese metropolis for nearly a decade, departing in 2022. By 2025, she moved to America. When she got there, she dove into an intense period of “overindulging on democracy,” going to talks, demonstrations, and delving into New York’s library system.
But in the year after Donald Trump returned to office again, there's been a noticeable shift in the atmosphere, she says. “In China, I understood where the line was, whereas in the US I find myself on shifting sands.”
Her concerns mirror an emerging political reality in the US which many Chinese, or people with experience in the country, perceive as eerily similar. Enemies are ostracised. The president demands absolute loyalty. Journalists are targeted. Institutions are attacked.
Trump has not been shy about his admiration for Xi Jinping, China’s strongman leader. He's called him as “fantastic”. When they reached a brief ceasefire in economic tensions recently, the camaraderie between the two leaders of countries with diametrically opposed governance models was evident. And after decades of hope in the US that improved relations with China could assist the growing nation to liberalise, under Trump 2.0, it seems as if America is being pulled in China's path, rather than the other way around.
“America is experiencing a period of societal upheaval,” stated Zhang Qianfan, a professor at Peking University. “The president, Trump, is attempting to mobilise the masses to sideline or undermine the elite … reminiscent of what happened in China half a century ago.”
Since Trump initiated what's termed Department for Government Efficiency, or the agency, on federal institutions early on in office, numerous Chinese observers see US politics through the lens of China's historical period. Whether it is the rallying of the youth to carry out presidential directives, or purging institutions of perceived enemies, Trump as viewed from China has brought disorder reminiscent of Mao to the US, though absent equivalent degrees of force.
But since the turmoil of the early months of the new administration has calmed, a new, distinct type of climate has settled in the US, which in different ways seems familiar to many Chinese people.
‘The Beacon Has Become Dimmer’
The most profound parallel between Trump’s America and China is the crackdown on open expression.
Deng Haiyan, now a CCP dissenter, found himself in a controversy recently, the likes of which he once faced in his homeland. He has lived in America since 2019, having fled the country due to pressure from officials.
In September, after the death of Charlie Kirk, he posted that the individual was a “scumbag”. Like people nationwide – who lost their jobs for expressing criticism about Kirk – Deng faced significant backlash. Relatives was doxed and he faced allegations of espionage attempting to create division.
“That event was a real shock. I never imagined such a thing would occur in the United States – something that should only happen in a repressive state,” Deng said.
His pile on originated from fellow social media users, rather than the government, but that kind of public monitoring also has similarities with China.
“Regarding targeting those who disagree and starting to surveil open discourse about issues deemed controversial … That’s starting to emerge here,” said an academic, a scholar at Georgia State University. “This is observed in the East now as too,” she said, adding that there were now fears in America of students reporting on teachers, a type of monitoring promoted by the CCP.
Zhang, the legal expert, said that progressive thinkers such as him once turned to America for political inspiration, in part because public debate on domestic politics in the country is dangerous. However, “America isn't a ideal for progressive Chinese. America’s image has declined across the board.”
“We used to see America as the beacon of constitutional democracy, but since the new administration, this lighthouse seems to have become less luminous”.
Chinese liberals, typically, at least in private, skeptical about China’s political system, now perceive it more acceptable than America’s, Zhang said. “It’s sort of difficult to acknowledge this reality … but post-COVID, the government appears to be pursuing the right thing in environmental protection and promoting EVs and tech investment,” he noted, while “the West, exemplified by the United States, appear declining.”
The government's acquisition of stakes in American firms has also drawn comparisons with China, where the distinction between government and private industry is frequently unclear.
Recently, the US government announced it would become an investor in a startup specialising in rare earth processing, following comparable shares in other companies deemed vital to the country's safety. These moves have made some investors nervous that the US is entering a new era of state intervention in the private sector.
Yet, there remain major differences between the US under Trump and China. In October, several news organisations including the Guardian declined to agree to a defense department rule that demanded reporting solely on government-authorised news. American judiciary have halted or overturned many of Trump’s actions, something that would be unthinkable in the nation's party-dominated legal system.
An analyst, the founder of a consulting firm, a China-focused advisory firm, commented: “America might face its gravest challenge of all time, far more severe than it is now, and it would remain more free, more open, and more liberal than the East under its leader.”
The professor notes that although many intellectuals in China were surprised to see American colleges yield to government demands concerning diversity and inclusion practices and free speech on campus, in the East, the top universities are all state-owned inherently. University leaders, who are selected by the state, “have no liberty of saying no. They dare not defy orders.”
Still, Americans are beginning to adopt measures previously associated with more authoritarian countries. An academic at an American college once vocal on US-China issues refused to speak for this piece. He said: “The truth is, I am scared of suppression in the US: I actually feel less afraid criticizing China's leader now than say anything bad
