Trump Backs Musk As He Roils The Federal Workforce With Demands And Threats
HuffPost
President Donald Trump is backing Elon Musk’s demand that federal employees explain their recent accomplishments or risk getting fired.
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump backed Elon Musk’s demand that federal employees explain their recent accomplishments by the end of Monday or risk getting fired, even as government agency officials were told that compliance with Musk’s edict was voluntary.
Confusion and anger over the situation spawned new litigation and added to turmoil within the federal workforce.
“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.”
The Republican president said Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency has found “hundreds of billions of dollars in fraud” as he suggested that federal paychecks are going to nonexistent employees. He did not present evidence for his claims.
Even as Trump and Musk pressed their case, the Office of Personnel Management informed agency leaders that their workers were not required to respond by the deadline of 11:59 p.m. EST Monday, according to a person with knowledge of the conversation who requested anonymity to discuss internal matters.
One VA employee said they were "furious" to see leadership's advice that they justify their jobs to Elon Musk.
The Texas Democrat blasted Republicans as the clock ticks down to a possible government shutdown.
“President Trump believes that the bureaucracy in Washington should be abolished so that we can return education to the states, where it belongs,” Linda McMahon wrote.
The Democratic political insider said the president's approval rating is about to take a big hit very soon.
The president on Sunday night named right-wing podcast host Dan Bongino to be deputy director of the FBI.
Sunday's star-studded ceremony aired live on Netflix for the second year in a row.
GOP officials who have supported Ukraine are trying to balance their opposition to Russia while remaining loyal to Trump.
A federal union leader told the administration to retract its insulting "what did you do last week?" email, saying it violates the law and wastes everybody's time.
This week, Russian media said Trump's shifting stance toward Ukraine is in "total alignment" with the Kremlin.
"This is the ultimate dick boss move from Musk - except he isn’t even the boss, he’s just a dick."
Charlie Angus, a member of Canada's Parliament, predicted that the world "will be forced" to treat America "the way we treat Putin" due to Trump.
Four decades after Ronald Reagan confronted the Soviets' "evil empire," Donald Trump has essentially switched sides.
Charlie Angus, a member of Canada's Parliament, predicted that the world "will be forced" to treat America "the way we treat Putin" due to Trump.