Over 20 DOGE Workers Quit, Refuse to ‘Dismantle Critical Public Services’ Under Elon Musk’s Direction
AP photo
More than 20 workers at Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) have opted to resign rather than “dismantle critical public services,” the Associated Press reported Tuesday.
“We swore to serve the American people and uphold our oath to the Constitution across presidential administrations,” the 21 workers wrote in a joint resignation letter. “However, it has become clear that we can no longer honor those commitments.”
The resignations come days after a notorious Musk email asked federal employees, “What did you do last week?”
“Please reply to this email with approx. 5 bullets of what you accomplished last week and cc your manager,” the email read. “Please do not send any classified information, links, or attachments.”
Top Trump administration officials — including newly-confirmed FBI director Kash Patel — instructed their employees not to respond to the email from the Office of Personnel Management (OPM), despite Musk’s warnings that ignoring it would be considered a resignation.
Subject to the discretion of the President, they will be given another chance.
Failure to respond a second time will result in termination. https://t.co/04xzgScXfj
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) February 25, 2025
Musk later conceded that federal employees who failed to reply to his cross-agency productivity audit email issued Saturday were given “another chance” at President Donald Trump’s “discretion” — but warned that next time, ignoring the email would “result in termination.”
The outgoing employees worked for what was originally known as the United States Digital Service, which was established under former President Barack Obama, the AP reported.
The U.S. Digital Service’s website describes the team as “mission-driven professionals who are passionate about applying our work and lived experiences to public service.
“We come from a range of cultural, geographical, and ethnic backgrounds, and we represent a myriad of intersecting identities, just like the people we serve. We are curious about understanding the needs of people and are excited to use our short tours of service to make a positive impact.”
