A Trump administration spokesperson said more than 40,000 federal employees had taken the buyout and the number is "growing."

Elon Musk has declared war on the bureaucracy. And as a Thursday deadline nears for federal employees to take a "buyout," he is looking to demoralize and wear down his enemy. Across the government, officials in President Donald Trump’s administration have fired off message after message pushing staff to accept the deferred resignation program,