Trump's United States During Trump's Second Term Seems Oddly Recognizable to Observers from the East

When the standup comedian, a rising comedic talent, steps onto the stage in New York, she's not just considering which jokes to deliver. She also weighs which topics to steer clear of. “I don't engage in directly criticizing the government,” she explained. Or if she ventures there, 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 it's a habit from China.”

Wang, thirty-nine, resided in Shanghai for almost ten years, leaving in that year. By 2025, she moved to the US. When she got there, she embarked on an intense period of “revenge bingeing on freedom,” going to lectures, demonstrations, and delving into the city's library system.

But over the past year since Donald Trump returned to office again, there has been a noticeable shift in the atmosphere, she notes. “In China, I knew where the line was, while in the US I'm standing on unstable ground.”

Wang’s concerns mirror an emerging political reality in America which numerous individuals from China, or those who have lived in China, perceive as eerily similar. Opponents face exclusion. The president demands total allegiance. Reporters face scrutiny. Institutions come under fire.

The president has not been shy regarding his respect for Xi Jinping, the nation's authoritarian figure. He has described Xi as a “great guy”. As they agreed a brief ceasefire in economic tensions on Thursday, the bonhomie between both figures of countries with diametrically opposed political systems was evident. And after decades of hope in the US that improved relations with the East could assist the rising power become more open, in the current administration, it seems as if America is shifting in China's path, rather than the other way around.

“The United States is undergoing a period of cultural revolution,” said Zhang Qianfan, a professor at Peking University. “The president, Trump, is attempting to rally the masses to marginalize or undermine established figures … similar to events in China half a century ago.”

Since the administration unleashed what's termed Department for Government Efficiency, or the agency, on the Washington bureaucracy at the start of his term, numerous Chinese observers have viewed US politics via the perspective of the Cultural Revolution. Be it the mobilisation of young people to carry out presidential directives, or purging institutions of perceived enemies, Trump as viewed from China has delivered Mao-style chaos to the US, though without the same levels of violence.

However after the turmoil of the initial period of the new administration subsided, a new, distinct type of political atmosphere has emerged in the country, which in different ways also feels familiar to numerous Chinese individuals.

‘The Beacon Is Less Bright’

The most profound similarity between Trump’s America and the East is the crackdown on open expression.

A former police officer, turned CCP critic, found himself in the eye of a storm recently, similar to what he once faced in his homeland. He has lived in America since 2019, after escaping China because of pressure from the authorities.

Last fall, after the death of Charlie Kirk, Deng tweeted that Kirk was “despicable”. Similar to others nationwide – who were fired as a result of expressing criticism regarding him – Deng faced a huge backlash. Relatives was doxed and he faced allegations of espionage seeking to divide the US.

“That event was a real shock. I hadn't thought that something like this would occur in America – something that typically happens in a repressive state,” Deng said.

Deng’s backlash came from online peers, rather than the state, but that kind of social surveillance bears parallels with China.

“In terms of going after those who disagree and starting to surveil open discourse about issues deemed controversial … It's appearing here,” noted Maria Repnikova, an associate professor at a US university. “This is that you see in the East today as well,” she said, adding that there were now fears in the US of pupils informing against teachers, a form of surveillance that has been encouraged by Chinese authorities.

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

“We once viewed America as the symbol of democratic governance, but after Trump took power, that guide seems to have become dimmer”.

Progressive Chinese, typically, behind closed doors, skeptical about China’s political system, are increasingly finding it more acceptable than America’s, Zhang said. “It's somewhat difficult to acknowledge this … but after the pandemic, authorities seems to be doing the right thing in improving the environment and developing electric cars and tech investment,” he noted, while “Western nations, exemplified by America, seems to be declining.”

The government's purchase of stakes in US companies has also drawn comparisons with the East, where the line between government and business is often blurred.

Recently, authorities stated it will take an investor in a new company specialising in mineral refinement, after taking similar stakes in other companies it considers vital to the country's safety. These moves have left some investors concerned that the US is entering a fresh phase of state intervention in the private sector.

Yet, there remain major differences between Trump’s America and the East. In October, multiple media outlets including the Guardian declined to agree to a defense department rule that required they only report on approved information. American judiciary have blocked or overturned numerous Trump’s actions, an action that is unthinkable in the nation's party-dominated judiciary.

Isaac Stone Fish, the founder of a consulting firm, a China-focused advisory firm, said: “The United States might face the worst crisis of its history, orders of magnitudes worse than it is now, and it will still be more free, open, and more liberal than China under Xi.”

Zhang observes that while numerous scholars in China were surprised to see US universities capitulate to official requests concerning diversity and inclusion practices and open discourse on university grounds, in the East, the top universities are publicly controlled inherently. University leaders, which are selected by the state, “cannot of saying no. They can’t afford to be disobedient.”

Still, Americans are starting to take precautions previously confined to repressive regimes. An academic at an American college once outspoken on bilateral matters refused to be interviewed for this article. He said: “Honestly, I fear of the censorship here: I actually feel less afraid criticizing China's leader these days than say anything bad