It’s a simple question: What did you do last week? And yet, for some reason, a whole chunk of the federal workforce just couldn’t bring themselves to answer it. Maybe it’s because they don’t actually do much of anything. Or maybe it’s because, after years of hiding behind bloated bureaucracy, redundant job titles, and “work” that produces nothing but more paperwork, accountability is finally knocking at the door.
Enter Elon Musk, chair of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) (yes, that’s a real thing now), who decided to implement the scandalous idea of asking federal employees to list five things they accomplished last week. Not ten pages, not a report filled with jargon—just five bullet points. You’d think this was some dystopian crackdown on personal freedoms the way some people reacted.
Over a million federal workers managed to comply with the request, and honestly, that’s probably the most productive thing some of them have done in years. White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt even said it took her about 90 seconds to come up with five things she had done. Imagine that—less time than it takes a D.C. bureaucrat to finish a Starbucks order. Yet, somehow, a contingent of government employees—undoubtedly the ones who spend most of their time “working remotely” while browsing TikTok—just couldn’t be bothered to reply.
Musk wasn’t exactly sympathetic. He went to X (formerly Twitter) to spell it out: The test was literally just typing some words and hitting send. That’s it. If you couldn’t manage that, you’re either hiding something or proving his point that Washington’s bureaucracy is drowning in uselessness. And for those who failed to respond? Well, the first deadline passed, but Trump—because he’s actually reasonable—said they’d get another shot. But after that? Bye-bye.
Naturally, the usual suspects in the media lost their minds, spinning this as some cruel, authoritarian overreach. Asking people to prove they’re actually doing their jobs is apparently a step too far. Keep in mind, these are the same people who screamed about “essential” versus “non-essential” workers during COVID. Guess what? This little exercise might just prove how many “non-essential” employees are still collecting taxpayer-funded paychecks.
Of course, some agencies pushed back, particularly those dealing with classified information. Trump was fine with that, saying the intelligence community and national security personnel obviously have a different set of responsibilities. That’s common sense. But let’s be real—those aren’t the folks dragging their feet. It’s the layers of mid-level bureaucrats who wouldn’t last a week in the private sector but have somehow turned government work into a lifelong, untouchable career with zero accountability.
Meanwhile, Trump officials like Sean Duffy, Kelly Loeffler, and Doug Collins proudly posted their weekly accomplishments online, leading by example. You know, like actual leaders. They didn’t whine, didn’t dodge—just showed that, yes, it’s possible to actually do your job and be transparent about it. What a concept!
Mr. President, 5 things I did last week:
1. Terminated NYC elitist, anti-worker congestion pricing.
2. Launched an investigation into the $16 billion in taxpayer dollars wasted on a high-speed rail project that, after 17 years, has yet to lay a single mile of track.
3. Saved $10…— Secretary Sean Duffy (@SecDuffy) February 24, 2025
Here are five things we did at VA this past week:
1: We identified hundreds of wasteful contracts for cancelation that will allow us to redirect billions back to Veteran health care and benefits (we will be making an announcement about this soon)!
2: We reached 1 million…
— VA Secretary Doug Collins (@SecVetAffairs) February 24, 2025
However, here was an excuse from one worker on why she’s behind on her work:
Federal worker says she got behind on all her work because she was “threatened and harassed” by the simple email asking for 5 tasks she completed that week.
pic.twitter.com/0hxmWcNO2v— Benny Johnson (@bennyjohnson) February 28, 2025
Musk’s meme game also deserves some credit. His post featuring Achilles being taken down by an arrow labeled What did you do last week? was nothing short of perfection. The largest, most entrenched bureaucracy on earth brought to its knees by the mere suggestion of accountability. Incredible.
And Trump? Well, he summed it up perfectly: “We’re trying to find out if people are working.” Revolutionary, isn’t it? No wonder Washington is panicking. If Americans get a closer look at what their tax dollars are really paying for, the swamp might finally start drying up. And we can’t have that, now can we?
