Elon Musk will speak at the first cabinet meeting hosted by US President Donald Trump on February 26, 2025 at the White House in Washington, DC.
Brian Snyder | Reuters
The Trump administration sent a second email Friday evening to request that all federal employees summarise their work over the past week after their first efforts flare up amid a wave of disruptive orders.
Reuters confirmed that emails from the government’s HR department, the U.S. Personnel Management, have been sent to multiple agencies, asking workers to list five things a week.
The move marks a new push by billionaire Elon Musk and his team at the Department of Government Efficiency, evaluating government officials’ performance by looking at a massive layoff to dramatically trim the federal footprint.
“The president has made it clear that this is essential for administrative agencies,” Musk wrote X:
Musk attempted a similar tack last week, but he was stymed when some agencies, such as the state and the judicial department, told employees to stick to the chain of command, along with the threat of uncomplex workers being fired.
Ultimately, OPM was notified that it was voluntary to respond to emails.
But Musk continued to ask for emails, along with the support of President Donald Trump, as a way to say he would hold workers accountable. Both men suggested that there were no federal employees on the salary.
Critics, including democratic lawmakers and trade unions, say widespread cuts could hinder key government functions and services.
The second round of email does not include the threat of retaliation for non-compliance violations, but it says workers are expected to send responses at the start of each task.
According to media reports, Defense Secretary Pete Hegses has directed Pentagon workers to follow, but the State Department once again tells the employees to stay again, according to an order seen by Reuters.
According to a memo reviewed by Reuters, the Department of Homeland Security told employees to respond to internal DHS email addresses labeled “accountability” for national security responsibility.
The Department of Justice has also received an order. According to a message seen by Reuters, Ed Martin, a representative U.S. attorney for the District of Columbia, told workers in his office to follow.
“All federal departments are working with @Doge,” Musk posted Saturday. “For states, DODs and a few others, supervisors gather weekly achievements on behalf of individual contributors.”
Reuters were able to confirm that emails have been sent to employees at the Internal Revenue Service, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the National Institute of Health. All of these agencies are being targeted by Doge due to layoffs.
Last week, Musk’s team directed government-wide agencies to plan a “significant cut” of staffing across the federal workforce by March 13th.
The layoff continues
Already, around 100,000 workers have been shopping or fired after Doge was sent by Trump for federal staffing and spending. There are approximately 2.3 million federal employees in total.
This layoff was a coincidence as some agencies, such as the Food and Drug Administration, are forced to remember key personnel in order to ensure public safety.
On Friday, the Social Security Agency, which sends benefits checks to tens of millions of Americans, said it would cut 7,000 people from the workforce and close from several regional offices.
Most recently, the Trump administration has pulled plugs into a team of tech-savvy civil servants who helped build the Internal Revenue Service’s free tax return service and have improved government-wide websites.
In an email sent overnight to US General Services Agency (GSA) employees and seen by Reuters, GSA’s Director of Technology Transformation Services Thomas Shed said the team known as the 18F has been identified as “uncritic.”
The unit, formed at the tail end of the Barack Obama administration, served as an internal technology consultant within the government, ferretting duplication and waste, streamlining bureaucratic processes, and making public websites more user-friendly.
Questions about Musk’s role and Doge are at the heart of multiple lawsuits attempting to block access to government systems and sensitive data. The lawsuit argues that Musk and Doge are violating the Constitution by wielding vast power that comes only from agencies created through the US Congress or appointments made on confirmation by the US Senate.
Musk’s actions also caused some tension and confusion among Trump’s White House aides, but Trump himself is said to be fully on the effort.
Tesla and SpaceX CEOs were not cabinet-level officials and were not facing confirmation from the US Senate. The Trump administration has been circumventing exactly the role he plays within the Doge.
