Elon Musk says Pentagon official 'needs to find new job' for scoffing at DOGE diktat to govt employees

Elon Musk

Elon Musk has lambasted a US defence department official for criticising a mail by the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) demanding government workers to give an account of their work week.

In a post on X citing CNN, a Pentagon official allegedly scoffed at the email sent by the Office of Personnel Management and called it the "silliest thing in 40 years."

The post said that both the Department of Defense (DoD) and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) said they will respond through a chain of command.

Anyone with the attitude of that Pentagon official needs to look for a new job https://t.co/I9VRFXD3CG

Elon Musk (@elonmusk) February 23, 2025

Responding to the post, Musk said: "Anyone with the attitude of that Pentagon official needs to look for a new job."

The firm response by Musk comes at a time when DOGE, the new agency he leads under the Donald Trump administration, has doubled down efforts to overhaul the federal government.

Last week, Musk’s department sent emails to federal employees of agencies including the Securities and Exchange Commission, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention and others with the subject line reading: “What did you do last week?”

The email asked employees to reply to the email they have received with five bullet points summarising “what you accomplished at work last week” and copy their managers. The email sent from a human resources address gave employees until 11:59 pm EST on Monday to respond.