Trump tells his government that "anyone who doesn't agree" with Musk "can leave"

US President Donald Trump began his first government meeting on Wednesday, in which he gave the floor to tycoon Elon Musk, stating that anyone who does not agree with his plans for cuts and controls "can leave".

Trump once again supported the initiatives of DOGE (the Department of Government Efficiency that Musk created) and considered that there is no resistance among members of his executive regarding Musk's heterodox practices regarding public employees.

"Is there anyone who is unhappy with Elon? If so, we're going to kick him out of here," Trump joked in front of Vice President JD Vance and the secretaries of all departments that make up the United States federal government.

Musk, who was the first to speak despite not formally having a role in the executive branch, received a resounding applause from all government department heads.

The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) on Friday, following Musk's instructions, sent an email to all federal employees requiring them to list, by the end of the day on Monday, February 24, five tasks they had completed in the previous week or face termination, but several departments warned their employees that they were not required to respond.

According to US media, several members of Trump's team are beginning to view Musk's presence and his work on budget cuts and layoffs as a nuisance and interference, which has increased tension within the Republican executive.

"[Musk] is sacrificing a lot. And he's getting a lot of praise, but he's also getting a lot of criticism," Trump said.

Elon Musk said his job is just "technical assistance" and that if DOGE stops doing its job and the cuts are not made, "the United States will go bankrupt."

The Tesla co-founder said the email sent to some three million federal employees was not intended as a performance review but a "pulse" check or proof that these federal workers actually exist, something Trump echoed.

"There are fictitious people who are getting a paycheck" or who have other jobs and, therefore, "those millions [of employees] who did not respond are at risk. We may put them out of work," Trump reiterated.

According to Musk, about half of federal employees responded to the email.

Musk, the richest man on the planet, assured that he does what the President orders him to do and rejected that there is opposition to his initiatives within the Government, considering that the current executive is the most talented and the best "in all history".