Department of Government Efficiency head Elon Musk reaffirmed Monday that federal employees who fail to respond to an email detailing their weekly accomplishments could face termination despite conflicting guidance from the Office of Personnel Management, The Hill reported.
"Failure to respond a second time will result in termination," Musk wrote on X, doubling down on an initial directive requiring employees to submit five completed tasks from the prior week. The mandate, issued Saturday, set a deadline of 11:59 p.m. Monday for responses, initially stating that noncompliance would be considered resignation.
However, OPM pushed back against the directive, notifying agency leaders Monday afternoon that employee participation was not mandatory.
"OPM also clarified that a non-response to the email does not equate to a resignation," read an agency email obtained by The Hill.
The directive, reportedly sent at Musk's behest, ignited a dispute between agency leaders and the billionaire as federal departments scrambled to address confusion. Several agencies, including the FBI and the Department of Homeland Security, advised employees not to respond to the email.
FBI Director Kash Patel instructed staff Saturday to "pause any responses," noting that the agency would coordinate replies if necessary. "The FBI, through the Office of the Director, is in charge of our review processes and will conduct reviews," Patel said in a staff message.
DHS leadership echoed this stance, directing its 250,000-plus employees to disregard the request. Internal documents acknowledged concerns that employees might not recognize their participation was voluntary.
President Donald Trump, however, defended Musk's directive.
"There was a lot of genius in sending it," Trump told reporters in the Oval Office on Monday. "We're trying to find out if people are working, and so we're sending a letter to people, 'Please tell us what you did last week.' If people don't respond, it's very possible that there is no such person or they're not working."
The debate over Musk's authority to enforce such directives has drawn legal scrutiny.
"The president ultimately has to decide this. He's the head of the executive branch," Harvard law professor emeritus Alan Dershowitz said on Newsmax's "The Record With Greta Van Susteren" Monday.
"And if he has a conflict between Elon Musk, who is not technically employed by the government, and the head of the FBI, who obviously is technically employed by the government, the head of the executive [branch] has to make the decision."
How the White House will enforce Musk’s directive remains unclear as agencies continue to push back against the mandate.
Jim Thomas ✉
Jim Thomas is a writer based in Indiana. He holds a bachelor's degree in Political Science, a law degree from U.I.C. Law School, and has practiced law for more than 20 years.
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