Netflix in Turmoil Trump Threatens to Remove Susan Rice From Board Amid $10B Merger Shake-Up
The battlefield between the White House and Silicon Valley has reignited as President Donald Trump launched a direct offensive against Netflix. The President has issued a stark ultimatum: remove Susan Rice, former National Security Advisor to Barack Obama, from the company’s Board of Directors immediately.
The "Subpoena" Warning
The conflict was sparked by Rice’s recent comments on a high-profile podcast. She issued a stern warning to private corporations "taking a knee" or collaborating with the current administration’s policies. Rice signaled that should the Democrats return to power, these companies would face a "reckoning" through aggressive federal investigations and subpoenas to ensure retroactive accountability.
The Truth Social Ultimatum
Trump responded swiftly on Truth Social, branding Rice an "incompetent politician" and demanding Netflix terminate her board position "IMMEDIATELY." The President’s rhetoric carried a heavy implication: failure to comply would result in severe consequences for the streaming giant.
Leverage: The Warner Bros. Discovery Merger
Analysts suggest the timing of this attack is calculated. Netflix is currently in the midst of a high-stakes $72 billion bid to acquire Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) (excluding its cable networks and CNN).
The Regulatory Hurdle: A deal of this magnitude requires approval from the FTC and the Department of Justice agencies under the President’s influence.
The Rivalry: Netflix is competing against the Paramount Skydance group, which reportedly maintains stronger ties with Trump’s inner circle.
The Squeeze: Trump’s demand is being interpreted as a "loyalty test." Keeping Rice on the board could potentially lead to the historic merger being stalled or blocked entirely by regulators.
The Corporate Dilemma
Netflix Founders Reed Hastings and CEO Greg Peters now face a grueling choice:
Defend Corporate Autonomy: Stand by their board member and maintain governance principles, risking the collapse of their most ambitious acquisition.
Submit to Political Pressure: Remove Rice to clear the regulatory path for the $72 billion deal, at the cost of being criticized for allowing unprecedented government interference in private business.
In 2026, the selection of Executive Directors (Board Members) will not only be based on ability. But "Political Liability," or political risk, must be assessed. The Susan Rice case may make S&P 500 companies reluctant to hire former high-ranking civil servants from parties opposite the government. Because of fear of impact on the merger deal
Historically, antitrust laws have often been used to protect consumers. But now it is becoming a tool for political leverage. If the Netflix-WBD deal collapses because of the Susan Rice issue, it will create a new norm that "Relationships with the government have a bigger impact on business growth than the numbers on the financial statements."
Paramount, led by David Ellison (Skydance), has a relative advantage as "Legacy Media," which tends to have better access to the political spectrum than pure tech companies like Netflix, so the competition isn't just about cash flow. But it is a matter of "Political Capital" (political costs).
Institutional investors like BlackRock or Vanguard are watching this situation closely because if Netflix is willing to fire Rice, it may affect the ESG (Governance) score. But if they don't fire him, the stock may fall because the tens of billions deal collapses. This is truly a management "Lose-Lose" situation.
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Source: CNBC
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