The America During Trump's Second Term Feels Oddly Familiar to Observers from the East

When Vickie Wang, a rising performer, steps onto the stage in New York, she's not only considering which jokes to deliver. Additionally, she weighs what subjects to avoid. “I don't engage in openly criticizing the government,” she explained. And when she does, she ensures it's not captured for online platforms. “I'd never publicly share material where I openly disparage the government … I think this is a habit from China.”

Wang, 39, resided in the Chinese metropolis for nearly a decade, leaving in that year. In 2025, she relocated to the US. Upon arrival, she embarked on a frenzy of “overindulging on freedom,” attending talks, demonstrations, and exploring the city's library system.

However in the year after the president returned to office for the second time, there has been a “palpable change” in the atmosphere, she says. “Back home, I knew where the line was, while in the US I find myself on unstable ground.”

Her fears reflect an emerging political reality in America which many Chinese, or those who have lived in China, perceive as disturbingly familiar. Enemies are ostracised. The leader expects absolute loyalty. Journalists face scrutiny. Establishments are attacked.

Trump has not been shy about his admiration for China's leader, the nation's authoritarian figure. He has described him as “fantastic”. As they agreed a temporary truce in economic tensions recently, the camaraderie between the two leaders of nations with vastly different governance models became clear. And after decades of hope in America that improved relations with the East may help the growing nation become more open, under Trump 2.0, it seems that America is shifting in China's path, rather than the other way around.

“The United States is undergoing a period of societal upheaval,” stated Zhang Qianfan, a professor at a top Chinese university. “The president, Donald Trump, is trying to mobilise the grassroots in order to sideline or weaken established figures … reminiscent of what happened in China decades past.”

Ever since the administration unleashed the so-called Department for Government Efficiency, or Doge, on the Washington bureaucracy at the start of his term, many in China see American governance through the lens of China's historical period. Be it the mobilisation of the youth to carry out the leader’s will, or cleansing organizations of those deemed opposition, the president as viewed from China has delivered Mao-style chaos to the US, though absent equivalent degrees of violence.

However since the turmoil of the early months under Trump has calmed, a new, different kind of climate has emerged in the US, which in different ways also feels familiar to numerous Chinese people.

‘The Beacon Is Dimmer’

The deepest parallel between the US today and the East is the suppression on free speech.

A former police officer, now a Chinese Communist party dissenter, found himself in a controversy this year, similar to what he’d only previously experienced in China. He resided in America for several years, after escaping China due to pressure from officials.

Last fall, following the passing of Charlie Kirk, Deng tweeted that the individual was a “scumbag”. Similar to others nationwide – many of whom were fired for expressing criticism regarding him – Deng faced significant backlash. Relatives had personal info leaked and he faced allegations of espionage attempting to divide the US.

“That event surprised me deeply. I never imagined that something like this could happen in the United States – what should only happen in a repressive state,” he commented.

Deng’s pile on originated from fellow social media users, instead of the government, but such of social surveillance bears similarities with the East.

“Regarding going after dissenters and monitoring public speech on topics deemed controversial … It's appearing in the US,” said an academic, a scholar at a US university. “That’s something that you see in the East now as well,” she said, stating that there were now fears in the US of students reporting on teachers, a type of monitoring promoted by Chinese authorities.

The professor, the Peking University law professor, said that liberal Chinese intellectuals like himself used to look to America for ideals, in part because openly discussing domestic politics in China is dangerous. However, “America is no longer a god for progressive Chinese. The US's reputation has declined generally.”

“We once viewed America as the beacon of constitutional democracy, but since the new administration, this lighthouse appears dimmer”.

Chinese liberals, typically, at least in private, critical of China’s political system, now perceive it less objectionable than America’s, he stated. “It's somewhat difficult to acknowledge this reality … but post-COVID, 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, as represented by America, seems to be in decline.”

The Trump administration’s acquisition of stakes in US companies has prompted parallels with the East, where the distinction between state and business is often blurred.

Recently, the US government stated it will take a shareholder in a startup specialising in mineral refinement, after taking similar stakes in additional firms deemed essential for the country's safety. The deals have made some investors nervous that America is embarking on a new era of government meddling in private industry.

There are still major differences between Trump’s America and China. In October, multiple media outlets among others declined to agree to a defense department rule that required they only report on approved information. US courts have halted or reversed many of presidential measures, an action that would be impossible in China’s CCP-controlled judiciary.

An analyst, who established of a consulting firm, a China-focused advisory firm, commented: “The United States could descend into its gravest challenge of its history, orders of magnitudes worse than it is now, and it will still be freer, open, and more liberal than the East under its leader.”

The professor observes that while many intellectuals in China were surprised to see American colleges capitulate to government demands concerning DEI policies and free speech on campus, in the East, leading institutions are all state-owned by default. Administrators, who are selected by the government, “cannot refuse. They dare not defy orders.”

Nevertheless, people in the US are beginning to adopt measures that were once confined to repressive regimes. An academic at a US university who was previously vocal on bilateral matters refused to speak for this article. He stated: “Honestly, I fear of suppression here: I actually feel more comfortable to criticise Xi now than say anything bad