Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE)

[hepcat]

Send one to Trump. He’ll stop after bullet point 1….”watched Gorilla Channel until 3 am”.

[Blackhawk]

I would love love love to see CNN reports of nuclear weapons inspectors getting accidentally fired again because they didn't bother to respond to the email. That would be hilarious and show how utterly incompetent DOGE is.

Or have the entire government choose not to.

[RunningMn9]

I mean…I don’t work for OPM, and I don’t take orders from OPM. If the people I work for would like to instruct me to respond, they can tell me.

[El Guapo]

I mean…I don’t work for OPM, and I don’t take orders from OPM. If the people I work for would like to instruct me to respond, they can tell me.

Yeah, that's my view as well. So far I've received two separate e-mails from higher ups saying that they'll provide guidance. I'm sort of curious about the plausible scenario where management says to respond and the union says not to respond.

[Holman]

I would love love love to see CNN reports of nuclear weapons inspectors getting accidentally fired again because they didn't bother to respond to the email. That would be hilarious and show how utterly incompetent DOGE is.

Or have the entire government choose not to.

This. I don't have skin in this particular turn of the game, but mass refusals and mass resistance seem like the only way to go.

It's going to take huge numbers of people to stop what's coming.

[pr0ner]

The fact that this email was sent on a Saturday and a) I've heard from multiple people about it and b) so many emails have been sent from fed supervisors to their employees about it is wild.

[Smoove_B]

Seeing online that judges have allegedly received these emails? Feels like someone isn't sorting the database they stole correctly.

[LawBeefaroni]

Seeing online that judges have allegedly received these emails? Feels like someone isn't sorting the database they stole correctly.

It's still amateur hour. Doesn't mean they're are harmless but they are carrying on the tradition of sloppy, unprofessional, abject amateurism.

[Holman]

Just as an aside, isn't the "Tell me five things you have done this week" literally a textbook example of bad management? As in, it's taught in business school as a negative example?

[Skinypupy]

Looks like many (most?) are getting told to blow it off.

Of course, they could be saying that, then turning around and firing anyone who doesn't respond. That's not entirely out of the realm of possibility.

[RunningMn9]

Only the FBI has directed their employees to ignore it (that I’m aware of). The unions are objecting on the grounds that I laid out above - we don’t work for OPM, and they have no authority to task us with work.

I’m assuming the only reason Patel is doing this is because he wants credit for the coming purge. But it does make other dept leaders look like pussies if they don’t stand up to it.

[RunningMn9]

Looks like State did too.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[GreenGoo]

I was thinking about this, and how it would feel if it were to happen to me. I lol'd at the absurdity. Chain of command is a thing. There is zero chance that individual employees across the federal government would be addressed by a single person or even organization. I would ignore it if it arrived in my inbox, assuming it was junk mail. Between union action and lawsuits and a judiciary unwilling to let the government act unilaterally, there is zero chance this would have any impact outside of water cooler gossip and mockery.

I feel for you guys, that you need to take this clown show seriously. And it added weight to my thoughts regarding the American empire stepping off a cliff. God, I feel like Canada is an alright swimmer, but is handcuffed to a suicidal non-swimmer that just jumped overboard. You guys are fucked, and us guys are likely fucked too, due to decades of diplomacy, economical entanglement and geographical proximity. And that's without addressing the toxic cultural influences.

I am not feeling optimistic this morning. Can you tell?

[Scuzz]

My daughter works for a government agency and her managers have told her to ignore it.

Crazy sending out something like that on a Saturday.

[LordMortis]

That's because they're hardcore and work 140 hours a week unlike they people President Leon wants destitute. There is no time to fuck everything up before 1600 on Fridays or after 0800 on Mondays.

[RunningMn9]

My daughter works for a government agency and her managers have told her to ignore it.

Crazy sending out something like that on a Saturday.

The person sending it has no impulse control, and no one on this planet to encourage restraint. He’s a paranoid drug user that can make his thoughts manifest instantly. It’s a real problem for everybody.

[RunningMn9]

The DOD just echoed the FBI and told them to kick rocks.

[GreenGoo]

The DOD just echoed the FBI and told them to kick rocks.

[Holman]

That's because they're hardcore and work 140 hours a week

Wasn't there a day this week where Musk sent out 220 tweets in 24 hours?

I mean, sure, he's keeping himself busy, but...

[Smoove_B]

Genuinely hope his liver and kidneys give out like a Cybertruck in 1" of snow.

[Grifman]

The fact that this email was sent on a Saturday and a) I've heard from multiple people about it and b) so many emails have been sent from fed supervisors to their employees about it is wild.

The whole point is to send it out over the weekend, give by EOD Monday to respond, then fire those that don't. Won't matter if they are sick, on leave of absence, on vacation or in an all day meeting. It's just another way to reduce the workforce. After all, no one is going to read 2 million emails describing what any specific employee is doing. It's good to see that many departments are telling their employees to ignore this.

[RunningMn9]

The whole point is to send it out over the weekend, give by EOD Monday to respond, then fire those that don't.

I don’t imagine anyone will be directly fired over a non-response. We don’t work for OPM or DOGE and neither has the authority task me with work or fire me (for any reason).

Whether this puts a check mark next to your name for future consideration, who knows? But in any case, over 1 million federal employees have been ordered by their direct chain of command to ignore it.

Which is at least a necessary step for Dept head to exert and maintain control over their kingdoms. But again, they are likely only asserting that because they want the credit for firing people.

[Scuzz]

Having worked for a government agency (twice in my life) I have no doubt that many agencies could get rid of many employees without it hurting their mission, but firing employees indiscriminately is crazy.

[jztemple2]

Key agencies, including some led by Trump loyalists, refuse to comply with Musk's latest demand

Key U.S. agencies, including the FBI and State Department, have instructed their employees not to comply with cost-cutting chief Elon Musk's demand that federal workers explain what they accomplished last week — or risk losing their jobs.

That resistance has intensified a pervasive sense of chaos and confusion, while highlighting a potential power struggle among President Donald Trump's allies, that is affecting federal employees across the country as a new workweek is about to begin.

Musk's team sent an email to hundreds of thousands of federal employees on Saturday giving them roughly 48 hours to report five specific things they had accomplished last week. In a separate message on X, Musk said any employee who failed to respond by the deadline — set in the email as 11:59 p.m. EST Monday — would lose their job.

Democrats and even some Republicans were critical of Musk's unusual directive, which came just hours after Trump encouraged him on social media to “get more aggressive” in reducing the size of the government through his so-called Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE.

Assessing Musk's threat for noncompliance, Rep. Mike Lawler, R-N.Y., said, ““I don’t know how that’s necessarily feasible. Obviously, a lot of federal employees are under union contract.”

It is unclear what legal basis the Trump administration would have for dismissing tens of thousands of workers for refusing to heed Musk’s latest demand, though the email did not include the threat about workers losing their jobs.

Labor unions have threatened lawsuits, while several agency leaders, including Trump appointees, encouraged their workers not to cooperate.

Newly confirmed FBI Director Kash Patel, an outspoken Trump ally, instructed bureau employees to ignore Musk’s request, at least for now.

“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,” Patel wrote in an email confirmed by The Associated Press. “When and if further information is required, we will coordinate the responses. For now, please pause any responses.”

Ed Martin, the interim U.S. attorney for the District of Columbia who has been nominated for the job by the Republican president, sent his staff a message Sunday that may cause more confusion. Martin noted that he himself responded to the request for last week's accomplishments.

“Let me clarify: We will comply with this OPM request whether by replying or deciding not to reply," Martin wrote in the email obtained by the AP, referring to the Office of Personnel Management

“Please make a good faith effort to reply and list your activities (or not, as you prefer), and I will, as I mentioned, have your back regarding any confusion," Martin continued. "We can do this.”

The night before, Martin had instructed staff to comply with Musk's order. “DOGE and Elon are doing great work. Historic. We are happy to participate,” Martin wrote at that time.

Officials at the State Department, where Marco Rubio is Trump's secretary of state, were more direct.

Tibor Nagy, acting undersecretary for management, told employees in an email that department leadership would respond on behalf of workers.

“No employee is obligated to report their activities outside of their Department chain of command,” Nagy wrote, according to an email obtained by the AP.

[El Guapo]

Kind of interesting that Patel told FBI employees not to respond.

[El Guapo]

Our management has told employees to respond to the e-mail, and for the bullets to copy-paste applicable items from a pre-provided list. Which I suppose limits the risk of employees being individually targeted (no DEI buzzwords that Musk AI might pick up on), and minimizes employees spending time crafting their bullets. But still somewhat disappointed that the correct "fuck off" option wasn't chosen.

Also somewhat amusingly CFPB employees (who are all on administrative leave) have been told to respond (with something along the lines of "on administrative leave as instructed").

[waitingtoconnect]

I was thinking about this, and how it would feel if it were to happen to me. I lol'd at the absurdity. Chain of command is a thing. There is zero chance that individual employees across the federal government would be addressed by a single person or even organization. I would ignore it if it arrived in my inbox, assuming it was junk mail. Between union action and lawsuits and a judiciary unwilling to let the government act unilaterally, there is zero chance this would have any impact outside of water cooler gossip and mockery.

I feel for you guys, that you need to take this clown show seriously. And it added weight to my thoughts regarding the American empire stepping off a cliff. God, I feel like Canada is an alright swimmer, but is handcuffed to a suicidal non-swimmer that just jumped overboard. You guys are fucked, and us guys are likely fucked too, due to decades of diplomacy, economical entanglement and geographical proximity. And that's without addressing the toxic cultural influences.

I am not feeling optimistic this morning. Can you tell?

They are so getting fired anyway
The idea in my opinion is simple.

1. You don’t answer you get fired by doge
2. If you answer - any thing you report will be used as an excuse to eventually fire you for bad performance.

Every week more and more people will be fired for bad performance until it’s your turn.

Looks like though we have a bun fight going on between the powers that be about who gets to fire from their department. Them or Elon.

[Skinypupy]

Whelp, my last remaining federal contract got DOGE'd this morning. I had naively hoped that it might somehow miss the executioner's axe, but they called to let me know this morning that it has been cancelled.

Elon has destroyed my entire business in 4 short weeks. Fuck that guy.

[Holman]

Whelp, my last remaining federal contract got DOGE'd this morning. I had naively hoped that it might somehow miss the executioner's axe, but they called to let me know this morning that it has been cancelled.

Elon has destroyed my entire business in 4 short weeks. Fuck that guy.

That truly sucks. I'm sure you're incandescent with rage, and I wish I could offer a good way to use it.

[GreenGoo]

I spent some time thinking about the email again last night. The sheer dehumanization that occurs when asked to justify your existence to some stranger unrelated and uninvested in your work is beyond demeaning.

I'm truly amazed this hasn't come to violence yet.

[GreenGoo]

Which is at least a necessary step for Dept head to exert and maintain control over their kingdoms. But again, they are likely only asserting that because they want the credit for firing people.

Holy s**t this is cynical even by my standards. Well done.

[Blackhawk]

Responding in accordance with the law in regards to recipient's security clearance.

• Worked on [REDACTED]
• Completed [REDACTED]
• Worked on [REDACTED]
• Achieved [REDACTED]
• Began research on [REDACTED]

[Skinypupy]

The Program Manager for my contract that got cancelled called me this morning as usual to confirm logistics for next week's training. They were shocked when I told them the contract had been cancelled

It's now the third time the agency has found out FROM ME (the vendor) that their contract has been cancelled by DOGE.

[hepcat]

In 1933 we had the Federal Works Administration. In 2025 we have the Federal Fired Administration.

[Smoove_B]

Johnson: "Elon's cracked the code. He's now inside these agencies. He's created these algorithms that are constantly crawling through the data & as he told me in his office, data doesn't lie. We're gonna be able to get the information. We're gonna be able to transform the way federal govt works."

Good to know all of our government electronic systems are now completely fuct up. I'd humbly ask anyone that works in the corporate or private sector what the reaction would be to Elon Musk showing up at your HQ and loading lord knows what onto your networks.

[El Guapo]

Apparently the SEC, in consultation with DOGE, is going to propose getting rid of all the directors of all of its regional offices. Presumably everyone would then report in to DC leadership? No doubt this all has very good and well thought out reasons.

[RunningMn9]

They are so getting fired anyway

No one is getting fired over that email. We don’t work for him, and he has no authority to fire anyone (except for the tween mynocks he has pulling apart the wiring of the federal government).

SP - I am filled with rage on your behalf.

[Victoria Raverna]

If DOGE has no authority to fire anyone, how did DOGE manage to accidentally fire the people who mantain nuclear weapons?

[Alefroth]

Johnson: "Elon's cracked the code. He's now inside these agencies. He's created these algorithms that are constantly crawling through the data & as he told me in his office, data doesn't lie. We're gonna be able to get the information. We're gonna be able to transform the way federal govt works."

Good to know all of our government electronic systems are now completely fuct up. I'd humbly ask anyone that works in the corporate or private sector what the reaction would be to Elon Musk showing up at your HQ and loading lord knows what onto your networks.

If the Biden administration had done this, Johnson would be having conniptions.

He's quickly becoming someone whose death I'd celebrate.

[The Meal]

Apparently the SEC, in consultation with DOGE, is going to propose getting rid of all the directors of all of its regional offices. Presumably everyone would then report in to DC leadership? No doubt this all has very good and well thought out reasons.

This matches expectations from The Atlantic article I posted earlier today in the Apprentice thread.

Bureaucracy is the friend of authoritarianism, but the enemy of patrimonialism, which is actually Trumps aim.