US President Donald Trump praised Elon Musk‘s efforts to reshape the federal workforce while calling for more aggressive action in a social media post that drew swift response from the tech billionaire.
“ELON IS DOING A GREAT JOB, BUT I WOULD LIKE TO SEE HIM GET MORE AGGRESSIVE,” Trump posted on his social media platform, adding “REMEMBER, WE HAVE A COUNTRY TO SAVE, BUT ULTIMATELY, TO MAKE GREATER THAN EVER BEFORE.”
Musk quickly responded “Will do, Mr. President!” before announcing a new accountability measure for federal workers. “Consistent with President @realDonaldTrump’s instructions, all federal employees will shortly receive an email requesting to understand what they got done last week,” Musk posted, adding that “Failure to respond will be taken as a resignation.”
Through his role at the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), Musk has implemented strategies similar to those he used at X (formerly Twitter), where he famously required employees to commit to an “extremely hardcore” work culture or leave. Earlier initiatives included mandatory return-to-office policies and buyout offers to federal agencies, similar to that of what he implemented at Twitter after its purchase.
In the mass layoffs at multiple agencies, the administration reported that about 77,000 workers, roughly 3% of the civilian workforce, accepted buyout offers. The Musk-headed department has further terminated more than 1,000 federal contracts it deemed unnecessary or wasteful, spanning 39 federal departments and agencies. DOGE claims to have saved approximately $55 billion in federal spending thus far, though a review of itemized savings on its website only accounts for about $16 billion.