Bernie Sanders criticizes Xbox layoffs and price hike
Sen. Bernie Sanders has publicly condemned Microsoft's Xbox layoffs and the console's price increase, tying the moves to corporate tax breaks and broader inequalities. He also points to his past efforts to rein in big tech companies.
Sen. Bernie Sanders, long critical of powerful corporations, slammed Microsoft after Xbox announced widespread layoffs and a price increase. On X he wrote: "Last year, Microsoft made $101 billion in profits, got a $12.5 billion tax break from Trump and paid its CEO $96 million," adding that "This year, it’s raising the price of an Xbox by $150 and eliminating 3,200 jobs. Please don’t tell me corporate tax breaks create jobs. It never trickles down." Sanders has previously called for breaking up OpenAI and proposed pausing construction of US data centers to give lawmakers time to regulate AI. In 2022 he joined Senators Elizabeth Warren, Cory Booker and Sheldon Whitehouse in criticizing Bobby Kotick’s golden parachute after Microsoft’s acquisition of Activision Blizzard. That record fuels skepticism about how much lawmakers can achieve beyond public rebuke.
