On Monday, Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) argued that Microsoft Corp’s (NASDAQ:MSFT) recent layoffs and Xbox price increases undermine claims that large corporate tax cuts ultimately benefit American workers.



<h2>Sanders Criticizes Microsoft Over Tax Break, Layoffs And Xbox Price Hike</h2>



Sanders renewed his criticism of corporate tax breaks, pointing to Microsoft after the tech giant announced about 3,200 job cuts and raised the price of its Xbox consoles.



Microsoft Chief People Officer Amy Coleman announced that the company will eliminate 4,800 positions, representing about 2.1% of its global workforce.



The Xbox division will account for roughly 3,200 of those cuts, with 1,600 employees affected immediately and the remaining 1,600 reductions planned over the next year.



In a post on X, Sanders wrote, “Last year, Microsoft made $101 billion in profits, got a $12.5 billion tax break from Trump &amp; paid its CEO $96 million.”



He contrasted those figures with Microsoft’s recent moves, adding, “This year, it’s raising the price of an Xbox by $150 &amp; eliminating 3,200 jobs.”



Sanders concluded with a broader criticism of corporate tax policy, saying, “Please don’t tell me corporate tax breaks create jobs. It never trickles down.”



<figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-x wp-block-embed-x"><div>
<blockquote>Last year, Microsoft made $101 billion in profits, got a $12.5 billion tax break from Trump &amp; paid its CEO $96 million. This year, it’s raising the price of an Xbox by $150 &amp; eliminating 3,200 jobs. Please don’t tell me corporate tax breaks create jobs. It never trickles down.— Sen. Bernie Sanders (@SenSanders) July 6, 2026</blockquote>
</div></figure>



<div>




Read Also:

Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella Warns Against AI Overuse: 'Don't Use Frontier Models For Non-Frontier Problems'




</div>


<h2>Sanders Expands Criticism To Meta And Trump’s Tax Policies</h2>



The latest remarks are consistent with Sanders’ broader attacks on what he says are corporate beneficiaries of President Donald Trump’s tax policies.



In May, Sanders accused Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) of receiving favorable tax treatment after the company paid $25 million to settle a lawsuit brought by Trump and contributed an additional $1 million to his inauguration fund.



Sanders alleged the company later benefited from an $8 billion tax break, saying its quarterly tax rate fell to negative 23%.



<h2>Elizabeth Warren Previously Targeted Amazon’s Tax Benefits</h2>



Sanders’ comments echo similar criticism from Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), who in February argued that Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN) received a $7.8 billion tax benefit under Trump’s tax law.



At the time, Warren said the tax break was equivalent to roughly 100,000 years of income for the median U.S. household, using the comparison to argue that the benefits of the tax policy disproportionately favored large corporations over working Americans.



Price Action: Microsoft shares closed down 0.96% at $386.74 on Monday and rose 1.40% to $392.16 in Tuesday’s premarket trading, according to Benzinga Pro.



According to Benzinga Edge Rankings, Microsoft scores in the 90th percentile for Quality, though its stock has posted negative returns over the short, medium and long term.



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"></figure>



Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of AI tools and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors.



<div>




Read Also:

Microsoft Challenges OpenAI With Faster, In-House 'MAI' Models




</div>


Photo courtesy: Shutterstock

AMZN

MSFT

benzinga_article

Amazon

Microsoft

Meta Platforms

Direxion Daily MSFT Bear 1x Shares

Direxion Daily MSFT Bull 2X Shares

T-Rex 2X Long Microsoft Daily Target ETF

YieldMax MSFT Option Income Strategy ETF

Roundhill AMZN WeeklyPay ETF

Direxion Daily AMZN Bull 2X Shares

GraniteShares 2x Long AMZN Daily ETF

Direxion Daily AMZN Bear 1X Shares

GraniteShares 2x Long MSFT Daily ETF

Tradr 2X Short AMZN Daily ETF

Roundhill META WeeklyPay ETF

Yieldmax Amzn Option Income ETF

Graniteshares YieldBOOST AMZN ETF

Kurv Yield Premium Strategy Amazon AMZN ETF

Roundhill Daily 2X Lon Mag Sev ETF

GraniteShares 2x Long META Daily ETF

Yieldmax Meta Option Income Strategy ETF

Graniteshares YieldBOOST Meta ETF

Direxion Daily META Bear 1X Shares

Direxion Daily Meta Bull 2x Shares

Roundhill MSFT WeeklyPay ETF

Kurv Yield Premium Strategy Microsoft MSFT ETF

OpenAI

Bernie Sanders Says Microsoft's Layoffs and Xbox Price Hike Show Tax Cuts 'It Never Trickles Down'