US President Donald Trump used a meme to ridicule federal workers who were upset over an email from the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) requesting them to outline their weekly accomplishments.
The president’s post came as Elon Musk defended the contentious directive, which some employees have described as “harassment.”
On Sunday, Trump took to Truth Social to share a modified screenshot from the well-known Nickelodeon cartoon SpongeBob SquarePants. The meme depicted SpongeBob deep in thought with a notepad, while Patrick Star held a list titled “Got Done Last Week.” The entries on the list included “cried about Trump,” “cried about Elon,” “made it to the office for once,” and “read some emails.” It concluded with “cried about Trump and Elon some more,” seemingly targeting those criticizing the email.
Trump posting SpongeBob memes.
We have truly entered the Golden Age of America. pic.twitter.com/b7t19SSv8P
— Mike Crispi (@MikeCrispi) February 23, 2025
Trump’s post seemed to support Musk, whose department issued the contentious email to all federal employees over the weekend.
The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) instructed workers to submit a list of five accomplishments by Monday at 11:59 p.m. Musk defended the move, calling it a “very basic pulse check” and stating that failure to comply would be “taken as a resignation.”
This email is a very basic pulse check https://t.co/4qEKErwSuE
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) February 23, 2025
‘Employees have no obligation to respond’
The directive triggered strong backlash from federal employees and unions.
The American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE), which represents 800,000 workers, firmly opposed the request. In a letter to OPM’s acting director Charles Ezell, AFGE President Everett Kelley stated, “We believe that employees have no obligation to respond to this unlawful email absent other lawful direction.”
The National Treasury Employees Union also criticized the move, describing it as “yet another attempt by the administration to scare hardworking civil servants.”
Some federal employees labeled the request as creating a “hostile work environment,” while agency leaders at the FBI, Department of Defense, and State Department reportedly advised staff not to comply. Newly appointed FBI Director Kash Patel instructed agents to “pause any responses” until the bureau develops a coordinated reply.
‘Ultimate d**k boss move’
Democratic Senator Tina Smith also criticized Musk’s directive, calling it “the ultimate d**k boss move.”
“I bet a lot of people have had an experience like this with a bad boss—there’s an email in your inbox on Saturday night saying, ‘Prove to me your worthiness by Monday or else.’ I’m on the side of the workers, not the billionaire a**hole bosses,” Smith posted on social media.
This is the ultimate dick boss move from Musk – except he isn’t even the boss, he’s just a dick. pic.twitter.com/3fSs2ud7Cz
— Senator Tina Smith (@SenTinaSmith) February 23, 2025
A federal employee from the Centers for Disease Control expressed concern over potential widespread dismissals, stating, “I can only imagine how many people they’ll fire based on the responses/non-responses to this.”
‘A trivial task’
The tech billionaire dismissed the backlash, describing the request as “a trivial task.” He asserted that DOGE had already received “a large number of good responses” and suggested that employees who responded properly should be considered for promotions.
Supporters of Musk’s directive argue that such accountability is routine in the private sector. Nonprofit executive Jeffrey Tucker pointed out that similar requests are standard when new management takes over, stating, “It is only causing screams and panics because it is government.”
Others questioned why government employees should be exempt from workplace accountability. “It’s standard practice to report what you’ve accomplished to your manager,” Ana Mostarac wrote on X. “Why should government sector employees be held to a different standard? If anything, shouldn’t they be held to a higher standard, given the importance of their work?”
In another post, Mostarac remarked, “Asking a government employee what they accomplished last week is ‘psychological terrorism.’”
Asking a government employee what they accomplished last week is “psychological terrorism.”
In the past, working hard for your country was a point of pride. pic.twitter.com/UN6NRqTqDx
— Ana Mostarac (@anammostarac) February 24, 2025
Several government agencies have moved to block or disregard the email. Some Department of Justice employees were instructed to hold off on responding until further clarification is provided.
