Trump's United States During Trump's Second Term Seems Strangely Recognizable to Those Watching from the East

When the standup comedian, a rising comedic talent, steps onto her platform in New York, she's not just thinking about what humor to deliver. Additionally, she weighs which topics to avoid. “I don't engage in openly attacking the government,” she stated. Or if she ventures there, she ensures it isn't recorded for online platforms. “I would never publicly share material in which I openly disparage authorities … I believe this is a learned behavior from China.”

Wang, thirty-nine, resided in the Chinese metropolis for nearly a decade, departing in 2022. By 2025, she moved to America. Upon arrival, she dove into a frenzy of “overindulging on democracy,” going to lectures, protests, and delving into the city's public library.

However over the past year after Donald Trump was elected for the second time, there has been a “palpable change” in the environment, she says. “In China, I understood where the line was, while here I find myself on shifting sands.”

Her concerns reflect an emerging political reality in America which many Chinese, or those who have lived in the country, perceive as disturbingly similar. Enemies face exclusion. The president expects total allegiance. Journalists face scrutiny. Establishments come under fire.

The president has not been shy about his admiration for Xi Jinping, China’s strongman leader. He's called Xi as “fantastic”. When they reached a temporary truce in economic tensions recently, the camaraderie between the two leaders of nations with diametrically opposed political systems was evident. And after decades of optimism in America that closer ties with the East could assist the growing nation become more open, under Trump 2.0, it appears as if America is shifting in China's path, instead of vice versa.

“The United States is experiencing a period of cultural revolution,” stated Zhang Qianfan, a professor at a top Chinese university. “The president, Donald Trump, is trying to rally the masses in order to marginalize or weaken the elite … similar to events in the country decades past.”

Since the administration initiated what's termed a government streamlining body, or Doge, on the Washington bureaucracy at the start of his term, many in China see US politics through the lens of China's historical period. Whether it is the mobilisation of young people to execute the leader’s will, or purging institutions of perceived enemies, Trump as viewed from China has delivered disorder reminiscent of Mao to America, albeit absent equivalent degrees of violence.

But since the turmoil of the initial period under Trump has calmed, a new, different kind of political atmosphere has emerged in the country, which in different ways seems familiar to many Chinese people.

‘The Beacon Has Become Dimmer’

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

Deng Haiyan, turned Chinese Communist party dissenter, ended up in the eye of a storm this year, the likes of which he once faced in his homeland. Deng has lived in the US since 2019, after escaping China because of pressure from officials.

Last fall, after the death of a public figure, Deng tweeted that Kirk was “despicable”. Like people nationwide – who lost their jobs as a result of making negative comments about Kirk – he encountered a huge backlash. His family was doxed and he faced allegations of being a Chinese spy attempting to divide the US.

“This incident surprised me deeply. I hadn't thought that something like this would occur in the United States – what typically happens in an authoritarian country,” he commented.

His backlash originated from online peers, rather than the state, but that kind of social surveillance also has parallels with China.

“Regarding going after those who disagree and monitoring public speech on topics deemed controversial … That’s starting to emerge here,” noted an academic, a scholar at Georgia State University. “That’s something that you see in the East today as too,” she added, adding that concerns are rising in America of pupils informing against teachers, a form of surveillance promoted by the CCP.

Zhang, the legal expert, explained that liberal Chinese intellectuals such as him used to look to America for ideals, in part because openly discussing domestic politics in the country is risky. However, “America is no longer some kind of god for progressive Chinese. America’s image has declined across the board.”

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

Chinese liberals, who are often, at least in private, critical of China’s political system, are increasingly finding it more acceptable than the US's, he stated. “It’s sort of painful to accept this … but after the pandemic, authorities appears to be pursuing correct policies in improving the environment and promoting EVs and tech investment,” he noted, while “Western nations, exemplified by America, seems to be declining.”

The Trump administration’s acquisition of shares in American firms has prompted comparisons with the East, where the line between government and private industry is often blurred.

On Monday, authorities stated it will take a shareholder in a new company focused on mineral refinement, after taking comparable shares in additional firms deemed vital to the country's safety. The deals have left some investors nervous that America is embarking on a new era of state intervention in the private sector.

Yet, there remain significant distinctions between the US under Trump and the East. In October, several news organisations among others refused to sign to a Pentagon policy that demanded they only report on government-authorised information. American judiciary have halted or overturned numerous Trump’s actions, something that is impossible in the nation's party-dominated legal system.

Isaac Stone Fish, who established of a consulting firm, specializing in China, commented: “America might face its gravest challenge of all time, orders of magnitudes worse than it is now, and it would remain freer, more open, and more liberal than the East under its leader.”

The professor notes that although many intellectuals in the country were shocked to see US universities yield to official requests concerning DEI policies and open discourse on university grounds, in the East, leading institutions are publicly controlled by default. University leaders, who are selected by the state, “cannot refuse. They dare not defy orders.”

Nevertheless, Americans are beginning to take precautions previously associated with repressive regimes. One professor at an American college who was previously vocal on US-China issues refused to speak for this article. He said: “Honestly, I am scared of suppression in the US: I actually feel more comfortable criticizing China's leader these days than say anything bad