Behind the scenes, cabinet secretaries compared notes as they tried to figure out how to respond to a directive from President Trump’s most powerful adviser without angering the president.

Federal workers who didn't respond to Elon Musk's request to outline what they did at work "are on the bubble," President Trump said during the first Cabinet meeting of his second term. Why it matters: Trump's comments came as he was flanked by every one of his confirmed agency heads,

Public threats to fire workers are a great way not to get millions of staffers on your side, as thousands of scathing, sometimes X-rated responses show.