Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) took aim at Walmart Inc Walmart (WMT) on Thursday, and he didn't hold back. In a post on X, Sanders pointed out that the retail giant has spent $37.6 billion on stock buybacks since 2020 — money he said could have given each worker a $23,550 bonus. Instead, he argued, Walmart pays wages so low that many employees end up relying on taxpayer-funded programs like Medicaid and food stamps (SNAP).

“The real welfare queen is the Walton family worth $485 billion,” Sanders wrote, taking direct aim at the family that founded the company.

It's a classic Sanders move: contrast corporate wealth with worker struggles. And the numbers he's citing are real. Walmart did authorize a new $30 billion share repurchase program back in February, along with a 5% dividend increase to 99 cents per share — the 53rd consecutive year of dividend hikes. The company also told U.S. corporate employees they'd get 121% of their eligible bonuses, just shy of the prior year's 122% payout, according to a Bloomberg report at the time.

Walmart's financials are, by any measure, enormous. The company reported $713.2 billion in revenue for its latest fiscal year, up 4.7% year over year. And in February, its market capitalization crossed $1 trillion for the first time. So when Sanders says the company could afford to pay workers more, he's pointing to a pile of cash that's hard to ignore.

But Sanders isn't just picking on Walmart. He's been on a broader campaign about the wealth gap. In June, he noted that roughly 60% of Americans are living paycheck to paycheck, even as the nation's total wealth hits record highs. Earlier this month, he highlighted a Wall Street Journal-NORC survey showing that 75% of Americans think billionaires have too much power in Washington, while working people have too little influence. The same survey found that 52% of respondents believe businesses wield power at the expense of workers and consumers and want the government to step in.

As for Walmart's stock, it closed Thursday at $108.40, down 0.85%. In premarket trading Friday, it was up a hair to $108.70. Not exactly a panic, but the political pressure isn't going away.

Whether you agree with Sanders or not, the math is simple: $37.6 billion in buybacks is a lot of money. And when workers are still relying on food stamps, the question of who's really getting the handout isn't going away anytime soon.