Trump's America Under Trump's Second Term Seems Strangely Familiar to Observers from China

As the standup comedian, a rising performer, takes the stage in the Big Apple, she is not only considering which jokes to tell. Additionally, she weighs which topics to steer clear of. “I don't engage in directly attacking the government,” she explained. Or if she ventures there, she ensures it isn't captured for social media. “I'd never publicly share material where I openly disparage the government … I believe this is a learned behavior acquired back home.”

The comedian, 39, lived in the Chinese metropolis for almost a decade, leaving in that year. In 2025, she moved to America. Upon arrival, she embarked on a frenzy of “overindulging on freedom,” going to talks, protests, and exploring the city's library system.

But over the past year after the president was elected for the second time, there's been a noticeable shift in the atmosphere, she notes. “In China, I knew the boundaries, whereas here I find myself on shifting sands.”

Her concerns reflect a new political reality in America which many Chinese, or people who have lived in China, perceive as disturbingly familiar. Enemies are ostracised. The president expects total allegiance. Reporters face scrutiny. Establishments are attacked.

The president has not been shy about his admiration for China's leader, the nation's authoritarian figure. He's called Xi as a “great guy”. As they agreed a temporary truce in economic tensions on Thursday, the bonhomie between both figures of nations with vastly different governance models became clear. Following years of hope in America that closer ties with China could assist the rising power become more open, under Trump 2.0, it appears as if America is shifting in the Chinese direction, rather than the other way around.

“America is undergoing an era of cultural revolution,” said a constitutional law expert, an academic at a top Chinese university. “The top leader, Trump, is attempting to mobilise the grassroots in order to marginalize or undermine the elite … similar to what happened in China decades past.”

Since the administration unleashed what's termed a government streamlining body, or Doge, on federal institutions early on in office, many in China have viewed American governance through the lens of China's historical period. Be it the rallying of the youth to carry out the leader’s will, or purging institutions of perceived enemies, the president as viewed from China has brought Mao-style chaos to the US, though absent the same levels of force.

However since the upheaval of the early months of the new administration subsided, a new, distinct type of political atmosphere has emerged in the US, which in different ways seems familiar to numerous Chinese people.

‘The Beacon Is Dimmer’

The most profound parallel between Trump’s America and China is the suppression on free speech.

Deng Haiyan, now a Chinese Communist party critic, ended up in the eye of a storm recently, the likes of which he once faced in China. He has lived in the US for several years, having fled China because of harassment from the authorities.

Last fall, following the passing of Charlie Kirk, he posted that the individual was a “scumbag”. Similar to others across the US – many of whom were fired for making negative comments regarding him – Deng faced significant backlash. Relatives had personal info leaked and he was accused of espionage seeking to divide the US.

“That event surprised me deeply. I hadn't thought that something like this could happen in the United States – what should only happen in an authoritarian country,” Deng said.

His pile on originated from fellow social media users, rather than the state, but such of social surveillance also has similarities with China.

“Regarding targeting those who disagree and monitoring public speech about issues deemed controversial … It's appearing here,” said an academic, a scholar at a US university. “That’s something observed in China today as well,” she said, adding that there were now fears in the US of pupils informing against teachers, a type of monitoring that has been encouraged by Chinese authorities.

Zhang, the legal expert, said that progressive thinkers such as him used to look to America for ideals, since openly discussing domestic politics in the country is risky. But now, “America is no longer a ideal for progressive Chinese. The US's reputation has worsened across the board.”

“We used to see America as the symbol of democratic governance, but after Trump took power, that guide seems to have become less luminous”.

Progressive Chinese, typically, behind closed doors, skeptical about China’s political system, are increasingly finding it more acceptable than the US's, Zhang said. “It’s sort of painful to accept this reality … but post-COVID, authorities seems to be doing correct policies in environmental protection and developing electric cars and tech investment,” he noted, while “Western nations, exemplified by America, appear in decline.”

The Trump administration’s acquisition of stakes in American firms has prompted parallels with China, where the distinction between government and business is frequently unclear.

On Monday, authorities announced it will take a shareholder in a new company specialising in rare earth processing, after taking similar stakes in other companies deemed essential for national security. The deals have made some investors concerned that the US is embarking on a fresh phase of government meddling in the private sector.

There are still major differences between the US under Trump and China. Last month, multiple media outlets including the Guardian refused to sign to a defense department rule that required they only report on government-authorised news. American judiciary have blocked or reversed many of Trump’s actions, an action that would be impossible in China’s party-dominated judiciary.

An analyst, 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 would remain more free, open, and more liberal than China under Xi.”

The professor observes that while numerous scholars in China were surprised to see US universities yield to official requests regarding DEI policies and free speech on university grounds, in the East, leading institutions are publicly controlled by default. Administrators, which are appointed by the state, “cannot of saying no. They can’t afford defy orders.”

Nevertheless, people in the US are beginning to take precautions previously associated with more authoritarian countries. An academic at a US university once outspoken on US-China issues refused to speak for this piece. He said: “The truth is, I fear of suppression in the US: I actually feel more comfortable criticizing China's leader these days than say anything bad