The article seems inconsistent. It presents evidence that Netflix's bid failed because they didn't counter Paramount's bid, and evidence that the president likes to be involved, but no evidence that Netflix's bid failed because of the president.

For example:

>A White House official, granted anonymity to discuss the potential acquisition, insisted that Rice had nothing to do with why Netflix lost the deal.

>It was “100 percent because of the bid,” the official said. “Netflix could have submitted an alternative offer and they chose not to.”

>A person familiar with the thinking said Trump promised to remain neutral “and he has.”

>Still, the episode underscores how more than 10 years after Trump came down the escalator, many of the country’s most powerful figures still sometimes misjudge or underestimate the president.