Trump Backs Musk as Federal Workers Push Back Against His Demands

Source: The Washington Post / Getty

White House adviser Elon Musk threatened to fire federal workers who did not prove their worth through email in a social media post on X.

Musk demanded a list of accomplishments from thousands of federal employees, warning of termination for non-compliance.

The Office of Personnel Management clarified that workers were not required to respond by the deadline set by Musk.

President Trump supported Musk’s actions, alleging fraud in federal paychecks, while unions filed lawsuits against the mass firing threat.

“What he’s doing is saying, ‘Are you actually working?’” Trump said in the Oval Office during a meeting with French President Emmanuel Macron. “And then, if you don’t answer, like, you’re sort of semi-fired or you’re fired, because a lot of people aren’t answering because they don’t even exist.”

Musk is leading Trump’s efforts to overhaul and downsize the federal government. They’ve urged employees to resign, directed agencies to lay off probationary workers and halted work at some agencies altogether.