At the beginning of the 20^th century, to protect the American people and their growing prosperity, President Teddy Roosevelt took on some of the most powerful individuals and potent economic combines, earning his status as the legendary “trustbuster.”

In this third decade of the 21^st century, having already shown a willingness to take on powerful international economic interests on tariffs, President Donald Trump now faces his own trustbusting moment. By stopping the proposed Netflix and Warner Bros. Discovery Inc. (WBD) merger, he will have exercised his duty to protect American prosperity and, more importantly, liberty.

President Trump’s task is more easily achievable than Roosevelt’s was. Rather than razing an existing trust, Trump merely needs to prevent this one from being formed. That said, given the economic and political interests at stake in this $72 billion megadeal, it will be a daunting task to prevent Netflix from becoming Net-Trust.

It is hard to perceive the Netflix acquisition of WBD as anything other than the formation of a trust. In opposing the merger, Breitbart’s John Nolte laid bare the economic dangers:

Netflix currently boasts 301.6 million worldwide subscribers. HBO Max has 128 million worldwide subscribers. Once the merger happens, Netflix is looking at about 430 million subscribers… Even if Netflix charged only $1 a month, that would still add up to nearly $5.2 billion in revenue per year. But the average customer probably pays closer to $12 per month, so now we’re talking about something closer to $60 billion per year.

No one can compete with that.

Nolte is correct. Though Paramount apparently tried to compete during the bidding process, it was rebuffed by WBD. Paramount is reportedly not giving up and has launched a “hostile takeover” bid for WBD, which could make Paramount a powerful ally to those opposing the Netflix deal. Given Netflix’s subscription-based business model, this pool of opponents could include theater owners and workers, directors, actors, and others in the theatrical film industry. President Trump may also join them, having stated, “Netflix is a great company. They’ve done a phenomenal job. But it’s a lot of market share, so, we’ll have to see what happens.”

Paramount’s bid has added further fuel to the firestorm of regulatory scrutiny the Netflix and WBD merger will face. The Trump administration is said to be reviewing the significant antitrust issues at the state and federal levels. Many of these regulatory concerns and obstacles revolve around WBD’s fiduciary duties if, in fact, it failed to accept Paramount’s higher bid and instead chose a lower one.

For example, if WBD chose Netflix because of cultural and political alignment instead of seeking a sale that would produce the best return for shareholders, it would constitute a potential “Revlon” violation. This violation stems from a 1985 legal case involving Revlon Inc. that went to the Delaware Supreme Court, which held that a company’s board of directors must seek the best value for shareholders in the event of a hostile takeover. If Paramount or others offered a better deal and the WBD board accepted a lesser bid, shareholders could bring immediate breach-of-duty lawsuits. If any emails or texts are showing ideological favoritism, that could be devastating to WBD in any lawsuit. As federal regulators are already concerned about the Netflix and WBD merger, adding fiduciary-duty issues gives them and state attorneys general greater impetus to intervene and/or disapprove of the proposed merger.

More important than the legal issues are the cultural effects of this merger. Andrew Breitbart always warned that politics is downstream from culture. Some people disagreed with him. None of them were leftists.

The left has always gravitated to cultural institutions, such as the media and the arts. For leftists who regard politics as their secular religion, they have no compunction about using art for political aims. Netflix has a penchant for doing precisely that: Exhibit A is their multi-million-dollar, multi-year production deal with the Obamas.

If the merger goes through with WBD, doubtless Netflix will continue—both subtly and not so subtly—to inundate their even more massive audience with leftist narratives and continue their woke proselytizing of the American people. But it will not end there.

Not only will the left flood the marketplace with ideological narratives, but it will also ensure that differing, dissenting narratives are silenced. Indeed, much of it will be done through self-censorship, lest one run afoul of the Netflix entertainment Net-Trust.

It is critical to learn this lesson from Adam Carolla about how Hollywood really works:

[Actors] are vying for a job that they don’t have. You have to be popular. You’re not gonna get a job. They’ll throw you out. They don’t need you. They don’t need anybody in Hollywood.

This is Hollywood’s version of the “golden rule”: Those who own the gold make the narratives, and they will brook no dissent.

Should this merger go through and Netflix engorges itself on WBD to become Net-Trust, those who own more gold ever won’t need actors, directors, theater goers, subscribers—or you.

Netflix won’t even need sympathetic federal regulators, a pliable Congress, or a friendly president. They will have an undreamt level of power—something that would have made the 19^th– and 20^th-century robber barons blush. These new titans of Tinseltown will have worldwide reach and the ability to shoehorn people into leftist narratives. There will be a serious lack of alternative views and voices. And, despite the left’s disdain for the God-given right to free speech enshrined in the First Amendment, they will be more than happy to invoke it as a shield for their efforts—as is their right—when government questions their own speech and practices.

The time grows short for President Trump and his administration to protect American liberty and prosperity by blocking the impending merger between Netflix and WBD. Indeed, if President Trump can seize this trustbusting moment by stopping Netflix from transmogrifying into the entertainment industry’s Net-Trust, it will be crucial to his efforts to accomplish his MAGA agenda. He cannot make America great again if our republic drowns beneath an endless deluge of cultural sewage.