After Trump Vow to Intervene, Kushner Linked to Paramount's Hostile Bid for Warner Bros.

Hours after Trump’s comments, Paramount CEO David Ellison—the son of billionaire GOP megadonor and close Trump ally Larry Ellison—announced the hostile bid to buy WBD, attempting to subvert the Netflix deal by taking an all-cash, $30-per-share offer directly to Warner Bros. shareholders.

Observers expressed alarm over the seeming coordination between the president and Paramount’s chief executive as the fight over Warner Bros. escalates. Trump reportedly favored Paramount to win the bidding war for WBD, which owns CNN, HBO Max, and other major assets.

Ellison was reportedly at the White House last week urging the Trump administration to block Netflix’s bid for WBD.

Speaking to CNBC on Monday, Ellison said that “we’ve had great conversations with the president about” Paramount—which controls CBS News thanks to a merger that the Trump administration approved—potentially becoming the owner of CNN, a frequent target of Trump’s vitriol.