Elon Musk’s trip demand that national employees list their accomplishments at function or encounter losing their jobs has been strongly supported by the Department of Government Efficiency‘s adviser.
Trump’s Cabinet split and members had to decide whether to ask their employees to submit a request for federal employees to report their accomplishments in response to Musk’s need next year, which caused widespread confusion. Husk has previously sparked disagreements in the Republican Party, including over the H-1B card conversation and a heated exchange with Steve Bannon.
However, the Trump presidency is vigorously defending the digital banker’s efforts to cleanse the federal labor in the fallout.
” In the first five minutes or so that I enter the office every day, I can name five issues, five guns. If you struggle to do that for a year … there’s no reason for that”, said Alina Habba, senior advisor to the president, who defended the Musk message to investigators at the White House Tuesday night.
The president himself reiterated Musk’s warning Monday evening at the Oval Office:” If you don’t solution, you’re kind of semi-fired or you’re fired”.
” People is working as a single unified staff under President Trump’s way. Any rumor to the relative is totally false, according to White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt in a statement to the Washington Examiner.
At a Tuesday press presentation, Leavitt moreover pointed to Trump’s continuing support of Musk.
Elon Musk is now even more intense because DOGE has so far proven to be very successful in making our authorities more efficient, according to the president, who sent out a truth final weekend to the president.
According to a White House business,  , DOGE’s rapid rate comes at the urging of Trump to describe an aura of efficiency, yet privately, to the public.
The dilemma sparked by the message comes as more centrist Republicans are being attacked by the Musk-led division, not just from Democrats, who are also facing basic backlash in their districts.
” It should not be Elon Musk’s call”, said Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME). ” I was delighted to see the pushback”.
When Musk posted Monday on X,” Theme to the discretion of the President, they will be given another chance,” he created even more uncertainty. Failure to respond a next time will result in dismissal”.
He even criticized federal employees for failing to respond to the message, saying the request was “utterly trivial” despite the fact that many Cabinet officials had advised them.
” The message request was utterly trifling, as typing some words and pressing mail was a test standard for passing!” There were so many people who also failed that pointless test, which their managers may have encouraged them to do in some cases,” Musk wrote in a post to X. Have you ever witnessed like DISCOVEREMENT and CONTEMPORATION regarding how This Fees are being spent?
Musk’s hard-charging management of the federal labor may have to be adjusted as he acclimates to Washington, said Sarah Chamberlain, Republican Main Street Partnership president and CEO.
Elon Musk is familiar with doing this in Silicon Valley, which is a much different from doing it with national people, according to Chamberlain. Because this needs to be accomplished, I support the White House standing up for him.
The , Office of Personnel Management , finally conceded Monday evening that the email was not longer necessary and that federal workers doesn’t harm their jobs if they didn’t reply to the email.
Some companies that handle sensitive data, including the FBI, State Department, and Pentagon,  , even directed workers not to handle Musk’s message. Importantly, recently confirmed FBI Director Kash Patel was among those who defied Musk’s needs.
Leavitt told White House writers, clarifying the chain of command and at least 1 million federal employees, in addition to resolving Musk’s message.
” The company heads will determine the best methods for their staff at their particular agencies”, Leavitt said at Tuesday’s presentation.
After receiving numerous hit questions, she did not, however, expressly state Musk as the head of DOGE. Amy Gleason is the DOGE superintendent, according to a White House national after telling the Washington Examiner.
Musk, who is not a Senate-confirmed Cabinet part, may go Trump’s Wednesday conference with his whole Cabinet, in an example of his participation in Trump’s inner group.
Yet criticisms against Musk’s DOGE efforts have not eased.
” I don’t have a problem with the DOGE effort going in and trying to accelerate changes and address efficiencies”, said Sen. Thom Tillis (R-NC). ” But I’ll tell you, if I were a Senate-confirmed head of a department, and I had somebody from the outside undermining my ability to manage and demonstrate there’s one leader in every department, I’d have a problem”.
” This is the ultimate d*ck boss move from Musk– except he isn’t even the boss, he’s just a d*ck”, wrote retiring Sen. Tina Smith (D-MN) on X, the platform Musk owns.
In a trolling post, Musk responded to Smith with the question:” What did you get done last week”?
” Listen, federal employees, it’s not crazy to ask them to report what they’re working on. My staff has to do weekly reports too”, wrote Sen. Mark Warner (D-VA ) on X. But how is Musk doing this, exactly? What’s he gonna do, read 2 million emails? Simply put, this is not serious. It’s just a clear example of the carelessness with which he has handled this particular project.
Jason Cabel Roe, a Republican strategist who has worked on numerous presidential campaigns, downplayed some of the Republican reaction to Musk’s efforts as an indirect counterargument to Trump.
” These are people who might not be happy with the direction the administration is going, but they don’t have the courage to criticize Trump, and so they think they can get away with criticizing Elon because there is no price to pay,” Roe said. ” If there’s anyone keeping score on who friends and foes are of the White House, it’s the Trump administration, not Elon Musk”.
GOP strategists who spoke with the Washington Examiner defended Musk’s actions and supported the Trump administration’s continued support of the billionaire.
Gregg Keller, a Republican consultant, pleaded with the Trump administration to stay in Musk despite growing opposition.
” President Trump not only should, but will, stand by Elon and DOGE. In fact, he publicly encouraged Elon on this just a couple days ago”, Keller said. The American people voted in November for exactly this kind of government accountability because the federal debt is”$ 36 trillion and counting.”
A Washington Post-Ipsos poll released this month showed that 34 % of those surveyed approved of how Musk is handling his job, 49 % disapproved, and 14 % were not sure.
According to a recent poll conducted by Quinnipiac University, 55 % of voters believe Musk has too much power to make decisions that affect the country, 36 % believe Musk has the right amount of power, and 33 % believe he has too little power.
Musk’s approval rating was similarly underwater according to a February Pew Research survey that showed 54 % of U. S. adults have an unfavorable view of Musk,  , including 36 % who have a , very , unfavorable opinion of him.
Keller cited a recent Harvard-Harris poll that revealed 28 % of respondents said there should be an efficiency-focused federal agency, compared to 28 % who said there shouldn’t be.
” Elon is on the right track, and President Trump knows it”, he added.
According to Chamberlain of the Republican Main Street Partnership, Musk may not like how the public perceives him.
” Elon Musk, the wealthiest man in the world, I don’t know if he cares”, she said. He is actually attempting to solve a problem and fix it, I believe. Perhaps it’s not the way the majority of people would go about it.
MUSK DEFENDS WORK PRODUCTIVITY REQUIREMENT AMID COLD SHOULDER FROM FBI PATEL
GOP consultant Matt Mackowiak, who was on Capitol Hill on Tuesday, claimed that House Republicans would stand by Musk.
” I don’t see any reason for distance. I don’t see anything really building in that regard”, Mackowiak said as he met with lawmakers. ” DOGE is highly popular among House Republicans”.
Samantha-Jo Roth and Naomi Lim contributed to this report.
