Q:

What is the C++ equivalent of python's import as? 

I've tried several variations of this with no joy...
auto& hrctp = std::chrono::high_resolution_clock::time_point;
auto& hrcn = std::chrono::high_resolution_clock::now;

I know I can use...
use namespace std::chrono::high_resolution_clock;

And I understand one shouldn't try too hard to replicate the paradigms of one language in another but I'm just curious.  Is there an equivalent? 

A:

This is more complex than it looks.   As Cheers and hth says, aliasing is different for types and functions and namespaces. 
For a simple type like std::chrono::high_resolution_clock::time_point, you can either use typedef or using:
using hrctp = std::chrono::high_resolution_clock::time_point;

or
typedef std::chrono::high_resolution_clock::time_point hrctp;

The advantage of using is that you can use it for template classes too. 
For a static member function or a stand-alone function embedded in a namespace, you can just use a pointer to the function:
const auto hrcn = std::chrono::high_resolution_clock::now;

You can't do this for non-static member functions (a pointer-to-member-function is a completely different beast), but fortunately you don't need to (because you invoke non-static member functions on an object of the appropriate type). 

The options for time_point are purely done at compile time.   However the function alias may impose a run-time penalty (because you are calling the function through a pointer, rather than jumping there directly).   However, write your code for clarity first, and speed second.   (OTOH, the C++ way would probably be:
using hrc =std::chrono::high_resolution_clock;

and then use hrc::time_point and hrc::now.