Hours after Elon Musk warned all US federal employees over their jobs if they failed to submit a detailed work report, FBI director Kash Patel instructed his staff to "pause any responses", saying that the agency is in charge of all its reviews.
Patel on Friday was sworn in as the ninth director of the federal bureau of investigation, with the Indian-origin former counterterrorism prosecutor saying that he was living the ‘American dream’.
Musk, co-chair of the department of government efficiency and advisor to US president Donald Trump, took to X to announce the arrangement wherein employees will have to furnish a detailed account of what they accomplished at work the past week. "Failure to respond will be taken as a resignation," he added.
This comes in the backdrop of DOGE's and the Trump administration's growing efforts towards shrinking the size of government and fire thousands of federal employees.
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The newly sworn in FBI director Kash Patel's move, however, has shown that now every Trump official is in agreement with Musk's productivity inquiry arrangement.
{{/usCountry}}The newly sworn in FBI director Kash Patel's move, however, has shown that now every Trump official is in agreement with Musk's productivity inquiry arrangement.
{{/usCountry}}In a message sent to the bureau employees, Patel said, “FBI personnel may have received an email from OPM requesting information. The FBI, through the Office of the Director, is in charge of all of our review processes, and will conduct reviews in accordance with FBI procedures. When and if further information is required, we will coordinate the responses. For now, please pause any responses.”
According to a CNN report, employees of the National Security Agency (NSA) were also told to hold off on responding to the productivity inquiry until further notice from the Department of Defense.
‘Cruel and disrespectful’
Interim US attorney for the District of Columbia, Ed Martin, reportedly sent an advisory email to all employees, asking them to "be general" in their responses if necessary. He promised to protect them and said, "If anyone gives you problems, I've got your back."
Meanwhile, Everett Kelley, national president of the American Federation of Government Employees, which represents over 800,000 federal workers, lambasted Musk's announcement.
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Kelley said, "It is cruel and disrespectful to hundreds of thousands of veterans who are wearing their second uniform in the civil service to be forced to justify their job duties to this out-of-touch, privileged, unelected billionaire who has never performed one single hour of honest public service in his life."
Kelley's union is planning to take legal action to "challenge any unlawful terminations of our members and federal employees".
The OPM email was described as "completely unAmerican" by Doreen Greenwald, the president of the National Treasury Employees Union (NTEU).
In a statement, Greenwald said that NTEU are professional civil servants who will not back down "to these blatant attempts to attack a vital resource for the American public".
While Musk has received flak over the recent announcement, President Trump on the other hand has reiterated his faith in the billionaire whom he brought in to help cut down on federal spending and reshape the government.
Shortly after the Tesla CEO's inquiry post, Trump, in his remarks at the Conservative Political Action Conference, called Musk a "patriot" and hailed his "great job".
A day prior to Musk's productivity inquiry, Trump had said that he would like to see the DOGE co-chair get more aggressive.
In a post in all Caps letters on his Truth Social network, Trump said, "Elon is doing a great job, but I would like to see him get more aggressive. Remember, we have a country to save, but ultimately, to make greater than ever before. MAGA!"