When President-elect Donald Trump named Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy to his administration, government employees knew their jobs might be at risk. But now, they face a new threat: being targeted by the world’s richest man and his millions of followers.
Last week, Musk reposted social media posts revealing the names and titles of four government employees, including a director of climate diversification and a chief climate officer. The posts have been viewed tens of millions of times, and the individuals named have been subjected to a barrage of negative attention. At least one of the women named has deleted her social media accounts.
While the information available online, government employees are now afraid that their lives will be forever changed, and some are even worried about being physically threatened. Others say the threat of being in Musk’s crosshairs might drive them from their jobs, achieving the goal of a smaller government without a review.
“The tactics are aimed at sowing terror and fear at federal employees. It’s intended to make them fearful that they will become afraid to speak up,” said Everett Kelley, president of the American Federation of Government Employees, which represents over 800,000 federal employees.
This behavior is not new for Musk, who has often targeted individuals he believes have made mistakes or stood in his way. One former federal employee, Mary “Missy” Cummings, was previously targeted by Musk, who subjected her to a similar tactic.
“It’s his way of intimidating people to either quit or send a signal to all the other agencies that ‘you’re next,'” Cummings said.
The AFGE pointed out that as a federal contractor, Musk himself has benefited from government programs, with $750 billion spent on contractors each year compared to about $200 billion for the federal workforce. “We are a comparative steal, and we want to help clean it up too,” Kelley said.
Musk’s actions have led to real danger for the people named, including Cummings, who was a senior advisor at the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. She received a torrent of attacks, including death threats, and had to temporarily relocate before she eventually moved.
“I’m just not going to let him win on this point,” she said, calling on others to speak out against Musk’s behavior.
The actions have also had a chilling effect, with experts and academics specializing in cyber harassment, doxing, and online abuse declining to comment on the record for fear of becoming Musk’s next target. “What has happened has an incredible and horrific chilling effect,” one expert said.
Ramaswamy, who was named by Trump, did not directly respond to questions about singling out individual federal employees but said, “The real problem is the bureaucracy.”