Netflix Faces a Presidential Ultimatum Over Susan Rice — and an $83 Billion Deal Hangs in the Balance

When a sitting U.S. president publicly demands that a private company fire one of its board members, it stops being a Twitter spat and starts being a national story. That is exactly what happened Saturday night when Donald Trump turned his attention to the Susan Rice Netflix standoff — and the stakes for the streaming giant could not be higher.

In a Truth Social post dated February 21, 2026, Trump gave the world’s leading streaming service a blunt choice: remove Rice from its board immediately or face unspecified consequences. With an $83 billion acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery pending regulatory review, Netflix is not in a comfortable position to ignore the president of the United States.

If you care about the future of media, corporate independence, and the politics shaping both — this is the story to watch right now.

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The Truth Social Post That Set Off a Firestorm

Trump’s message was direct and unambiguous. He called Rice a “political hack” with “no talent or skills,” declared that her power was “gone and will never be back,” and closed the post by signing it with his full title — making it unmistakably presidential in tone.

The post came in direct response to comments Rice had made days earlier on a podcast hosted by Preet Bharara, a former federal prosecutor. During that interview, Rice made pointed remarks about American corporations, law firms, universities, and media organizations that have, in her view, chosen to align themselves with the Trump administration rather than protect their institutional independence.

Rice argued that those businesses are operating on a flawed assumption — that political accommodation now will protect them later. She used the phrase “take a knee to Trump” to describe what she sees as a wave of institutional capitulation. Her message was clear: if Democrats win the 2026 midterm elections or the 2028 presidential race, those organizations should expect what she called an “accountability agenda.”

She also said those companies are “already starting to hear they better preserve their documents” and should be ready to respond to subpoenas. Those comments struck conservatives as a direct threat of Democratic Party retaliation against political opponents.

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How Laura Loomer Became the Trigger

The chain of events between Rice’s podcast remarks and Trump’s post ran through conservative activist Laura Loomer. Loomer clipped Rice’s interview and posted it on X, framing the comments as an open declaration of political warfare against Trump supporters.

Loomer wrote that Rice was “basically openly saying that Democrats will go after anyone and everyone who supported President Trump, embracing weaponized lawfare against potentially millions of Americans.” She asked Netflix directly whether the company stood by a board member she characterized as threatening half the country.

Trump shared Loomer’s post, then added his own message on top of it — transforming a social media clip into a presidential ultimatum. By Saturday evening, Netflix had become the focal point of the biggest political confrontation in the entertainment business since the Hollywood blacklist era.

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Who Is Susan Rice, and Why Does It Matter?

To understand why this dispute carries so much weight, it helps to know exactly who Susan Rice is and the path that brought her to the Netflix boardroom.

Rice built one of the most distinguished foreign policy careers in modern American history. Under President Barack Obama, she served first as U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations and later as National Security Advisor — a combination of roles no one had ever held under the same president before her. After leaving government in January 2021, she returned as President Biden’s Domestic Policy Advisor, overseeing major White House initiatives until stepping down in May 2023.

She initially joined the Netflix board in 2018 and stepped down in late 2020 to rejoin public service. In September 2023, she rejoined the board. Like all Netflix directors, she receives an annual retainer of $300,000. Her return was welcomed by Netflix leadership, who cited her extensive experience in international affairs and government operations.

Rice has also been publicly critical of Trump on multiple fronts. When Trump moved to eliminate federal diversity, equity, and inclusion programs, Rice issued sharp commentary. She remarked pointedly about Pete Hegseth’s confirmation as Secretary of Defense, suggesting that standards for qualification had collapsed under the new administration. Those remarks had already placed her firmly in the crosshairs of conservative commentators before the podcast interview became the flashpoint it did this weekend.

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The $83 Billion Question

None of this would carry quite the same explosive charge if Netflix were simply a company making movies and TV shows. But Netflix is currently weeks away from a shareholder vote that could complete an $83 billion acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery.

If the deal closes, Netflix would control HBO, CNN, the Warner Bros. film library, and a staggering range of other media properties — creating a media company of almost unimaginable scale. That transaction requires regulatory approval from the U.S. Department of Justice, which operates under the Trump administration.

Earlier this month, Trump told NBC News that he had decided he “shouldn’t be involved” in the regulatory decision and that the Justice Department would handle it independently. However, he appeared to walk back that stance with Saturday’s Truth Social post, which directly tied presidential displeasure with Netflix to a moment when the company desperately needs the administration’s goodwill.

On February 17, Warner Bros. Discovery opened a seven-day window during which Paramount Skydance — the competing suitor for the studio — could submit a stronger offer. Shareholders are scheduled to vote on the Netflix acquisition on March 20. The timing of Trump’s post, arriving in the middle of that deliberation window, is not lost on anyone watching the business story closely.

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Republicans Amplify the Pressure

Trump was not alone in turning up the heat on Netflix this weekend. Senator Eric Schmitt of Missouri — who had already questioned Rice’s board membership during Netflix’s February Senate hearing on the merger — weighed in on social media, calling Rice’s remarks evidence that the left had long weaponized corporate connections to advance a political agenda.

Schmitt argued that the relationship between Democratic-aligned figures and major corporations was a pipeline that was now “drying up” under Republican governance. His comments signaled that this is not an isolated presidential grievance but a coordinated Republican political position — one that Netflix will hear not just from the White House but from lawmakers with direct influence over the regulatory environment.

The Senate Judiciary antitrust subcommittee, where Netflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos testified earlier this month, saw Republican members use the hearing not only to probe antitrust concerns about the deal but also to push cultural and political questions about the company’s content and leadership. That hearing made clear that the merger approval process would not be purely technical.

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Netflix Stays Silent — For Now

As of Sunday, February 22, 2026, Netflix has not made any public statement in response to Trump’s demand. No spokesperson commented. No executive posted publicly. The company said nothing.

That silence is a calculated response — and it is one that carries real risk in both directions. Speaking out to defend Rice risks inflaming the president at a moment when his administration holds significant leverage over the merger. Removing her from the board, or engineering her resignation, would signal that a sitting president can pressure a private company into personnel decisions. That precedent would rattle boardrooms across corporate America.

Netflix has navigated political controversy before. When Rice first joined the board in 2018, there were calls for a conservative boycott that ultimately had no measurable impact on subscriptions or stock price. But the stakes are different now. There was no $83 billion acquisition pending DOJ review in 2018.

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A Test Case for Corporate Independence in 2026

The confrontation unfolding between Trump and Netflix over Susan Rice is being watched far beyond Hollywood and Washington. Every major corporation in America that has a board member, executive, or spokesperson with a political profile is taking note. The implicit message of Trump’s post is that board composition is now a matter of presidential interest — and that companies seeking regulatory favor should govern themselves accordingly.

Whether Netflix reads the situation that way — and whether it chooses to act on that reading — will say something significant about the state of corporate independence in the United States in 2026.

Rice, for her part, has given no indication of retreating. Her comments on the podcast were carefully chosen, not impulsive. And the argument she was making — that corporations should think carefully about the long-term institutional costs of political accommodation — may resonate even more powerfully now that she herself has become the example.

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What side of this debate are you on? Do you think Netflix should stand firm, or is Rice’s position on the board becoming more trouble than it’s worth? Drop your take in the comments below.