Trump's United States Under Trump's Second Term Seems Oddly Recognizable to Observers from China

As the standup comedian, a rising comedic talent, steps onto the stage in the Big Apple, she is not only thinking about what humor to deliver. She also carefully considers which topics to avoid. “I refrain from openly attacking the administration,” she explained. And when she ventures there, she ensures it isn't recorded for social media. “I would never publicly share content where I openly disparage authorities … I think it's a learned behavior acquired back home.”

The comedian, thirty-nine, resided in the Chinese metropolis for nearly a decade, departing in that year. By 2025, she relocated to the US. When she got there, she dove into a frenzy of “revenge bingeing on freedom,” attending talks, demonstrations, and exploring New York’s library system.

However in the year since the president returned to office for the second time, there's been a “palpable change” in the atmosphere, she says. “In China, I knew where the line was, whereas in the US I find myself on unstable ground.”

Her fears reflect an emerging political reality in the US which many Chinese, or those who have lived in the country, perceive as disturbingly similar. Enemies are ostracised. The president expects absolute loyalty. Reporters face scrutiny. Institutions are attacked.

The president has openly expressed about his admiration for China's leader, the nation's authoritarian figure. He has described Xi as a “great guy”. As they agreed a temporary truce in economic tensions on Thursday, the bonhomie between both figures of countries with diametrically opposed governance models was evident. And after decades of optimism in America that improved relations with China could assist the rising power to liberalise, under Trump 2.0, it seems as if America is shifting in the Chinese direction, rather than the other way around.

“America is undergoing a period of societal upheaval,” said Zhang Qianfan, a professor at a top Chinese university. “The president, Donald Trump, is attempting to rally the masses in order to sideline or weaken the elite … reminiscent of what happened in China half a century ago.”

Since the administration initiated the so-called a government streamlining body, or the agency, on the Washington bureaucracy at the start of his term, many in China see American governance via the perspective of China's historical period. Be it the rallying of the youth to execute presidential directives, or purging organizations of perceived enemies, the president as viewed from China has delivered Mao-style chaos to America, albeit without equivalent degrees of force.

However after the turmoil of the early months of the new administration subsided, a new, distinct type of climate has emerged in the US, which in different ways also feels familiar to many Chinese individuals.

‘The Beacon Has Become Less Bright’

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

A former police officer, turned Chinese Communist party dissenter, ended up in the eye of a storm recently, similar to what he’d only previously experienced in his homeland. He resided in the US for several years, having fled China due to harassment from officials.

Last fall, after the death of Charlie Kirk, he posted that the individual was “despicable”. Like people nationwide – many of whom lost their jobs as a result of expressing criticism regarding him – he encountered a huge backlash. Relatives had personal info leaked and he faced allegations of espionage seeking to divide the US.

“That event surprised me deeply. I never imagined such a thing would occur in the United States – something that typically happens in a repressive state,” Deng said.

Deng’s backlash originated from online peers, rather than the government, but that kind of public monitoring also has similarities with the East.

“Regarding going after those who disagree and monitoring public speech about issues deemed controversial … That’s starting to emerge here,” said Maria Repnikova, an associate professor at Georgia State University. “This is observed in China now as well,” she said, adding that there were now fears in America of students reporting on teachers, a form of monitoring that has been encouraged by Chinese authorities.

The professor, the legal expert, said that progressive thinkers like himself used to look to America for political inspiration, in part because openly discussing internal affairs in the country is dangerous. But now, “America isn't a ideal for Chinese liberals. America’s image has declined generally.”

“We used to see America as the beacon of constitutional democracy, but after Trump took power, that guide seems to have become dimmer”.

Chinese liberals, typically, at least in private, skeptical about China’s political system, are increasingly finding it more acceptable than the US's, he stated. “It’s sort of difficult to acknowledge this reality … but after the pandemic, the government seems to be doing the right thing in improving the environment and developing electric cars and investing in hi-tech,” he noted, while “the West, exemplified by the United States, appear in decline.”

The Trump administration’s acquisition of shares in US companies has also drawn comparisons with China, where the distinction between government and business is frequently unclear.

On Monday, authorities announced it would become a shareholder in a startup specialising in mineral refinement, following comparable shares in additional firms it considers essential for national security. These moves have made some investors concerned that the US is entering a new era of state intervention in the private sector.

There are still major differences between Trump’s America and China. In October, multiple media outlets among others refused to sign to a defense department rule that demanded reporting solely on approved information. American judiciary have blocked or overturned numerous presidential measures, an action that would be unthinkable in the nation's CCP-controlled judiciary.

Isaac Stone Fish, who established of a consulting firm, a China-focused advisory firm, commented: “The United States could descend into its gravest challenge of all time, far more severe than currently, and it will still be more free, more open, and liberal than China under Xi.”

Zhang notes that while many intellectuals in China were surprised to see US universities yield to official requests concerning diversity and inclusion practices and open discourse on campus, in the East, the top universities are publicly controlled by default. University leaders, which are selected by the government, “have no liberty refuse. They can’t afford defy orders.”

Nevertheless, Americans are beginning to adopt measures previously confined to more authoritarian countries. An academic at an American college once outspoken on bilateral matters refused to speak for this article. He stated: “The truth is, I fear of suppression here: I genuinely feel more comfortable criticizing China's leader these days than say anything bad