This was shocking but very necessary.
Elon Musk recently caused a stir by teasing that federal employees might soon receive a second email requiring them to list their accomplishments from the previous week. He warned that those who fail to respond would face “termination.” This statement came shortly after the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) clarified that the email requesting a list of five bullet points detailing employees’ achievements in the past five days was “voluntary” and would not result in resignation if unanswered, contrary to Musk’s initial claims.
Musk, the CEO of Tesla and SpaceX, expressed frustration over the initial response, calling the request trivial and easy to complete. He shared his thoughts on social media, commenting, “The email request was totally trivial, as the bar for passing the exam was to write some words and hit send! Yet most failed to even do that simple test, begged on in some cases by their bosses.” He later made it clear that, under the president’s discretion, federal employees would be given a second chance, but failure to respond again would lead to termination.
Musk, appointed by former President Trump to head the Department of Government Efficiency, argued that the uproar over the simple request reflected deeper issues within the federal workforce. He suggested that the lack of accountability and performance standards is a major problem in government agencies.
Former President Trump echoed Musk’s sentiment, defending the initiative before the new OPM guidance was issued. “I believed it was excellent because we have individuals who don’t show up to work, and no one even knows if they work for the government,” Trump stated. “What he is doing is basically saying, ‘Are you even working?’”
Musk’s email campaign and the subsequent controversy sparked legal challenges, with some arguing that the OPM’s actions violated procedural guidelines. Musk responded to the backlash, tweeting that federal workers “hate even the tiniest amount of accountability.” For conservatives, the episode underscores the need for a government that values efficiency, accountability, and performance—a sentiment that aligns with the push for a more disciplined, results-driven workforce.