Pluralistic: Bonta sold us out to Trump's oligarchs (22 Sep 2026)

Blog · Watch/Read · (gathered 2026-09-23)

• California AG Rob Bonta’s “settlement” greenlighting the Warners/Paramount/Tiktok merger is framed as a complete surrender to “Trump-aligned Ellison billionaires,” effectively handing control of the American film and TV industry to “odious creeps” through a deal that offers “less than nothing.”
• The supposed “concessions” are meaningless, including a commitment to make fewer films than currently produced, a temporary five-year hold on selling the Warner lot (but not moving it), and an “editorial board” for CNN/MSNBC chosen by the Ellisons themselves.
• A critical “force majeure” clause allows Warnermount to tear up the entire agreement if there’s a strike or a recession, rendering any other “commitments” null and void precisely when they might be most needed.
• This act of “straight up corruption” by Democratic “teachers’ pets” exposes the political class as “malevolent liars” who sell out working people to the rich and powerful, assuming the public won’t notice.