An emboldened Elon Musk is once again directing federal employees to justify their existence in writing — or face dismissal. Musk made his renewed demand in a social media post Monday after President Donald Trump seemed to contradict other senior administration officials and approve the directive that the billionaire initially sent out to workers over the weekend.

Key U.S. agencies, including the FBI, State Department and the Pentagon, have instructed their employees not to comply with cost-cutting chief Elon Musk’s demand that federal workers explain what they accomplished last week — or risk losing their jobs.