Up Next
Charlie Kirk Responds to Elon Musk America Party Rumors and the Future of DOGE
4:04
Charlie Kirk In His Own Words: Looking Back at 2025's Most Memorable Moments
42:19
Matt Gaetz Exposes How Congress Really Works: Lobbyists Write Scripts While Members Just Play Actors
36:59
Charlie Kirk is the Founder and President of Turning Point USA, the largest and fastest growing conservative youth activist organization in the country with over 250,000 student members, over 150 full-time staff, and a presence on over 2,000 high school and college campuses nationwide. Charlie is also the Chairman of Students for Trump, which aims to activate one million new college voters on campuses in battleground states in the lead up to the 2020 presidential election. His social media reaches over 100 million people per month and according to Axios, he is one of the "top 10 most engaged" Twitter handles in the world. He is also the host of “The Charlie Kirk Show,” which regularly ranks among the top news shows on Apple podcast charts.
Subscribe on YouTubeCharlie Kirk on the Email That Exposed Federal Workers Who Can't Name Five Things They Do
Charlie Kirk examines the controversy that erupted when federal workers were asked to list five accomplishments from their week. The simple request, sent to every federal employee, sparked outrage and mass refusal to respond. Kirk argues this reaction exposes a fundamental problem: millions of government workers operate in a protected class immune to basic accountability that every private sector employee faces daily. From McDonald's workers to Uber drivers, Americans justify their existence every single day—except those working cushy federal jobs funded by taxpayer dollars. Kirk connects this to the broader campus culture that has infected government institutions, creating safe spaces where simply asking "what do you do here?" becomes threatening.
The Email That Shook Washington
A singular email sent to every federal worker sparked a firestorm of controversy. The request was straightforward: list five bullet points of what you accomplished last week and copy your manager. No classified information, no attachments, just a simple accounting of your work. The deadline was set for Monday at 11:59 PM Eastern Standard Time.
As soon as this email went out, federal workers erupted in protest. They called it harassment, intimidation, and unfair treatment. The core complaint? No one has ever asked federal workers to explain what they actually do.
At Turning Point USA and Turning Point Action, this type of accountability happens every single week. Taking a page from Elon Musk's playbook, the organization now requires employees to methodically list five things they accomplished. Federal workers, however, are claiming this violates union rules and creates a hostile work environment.
The Absurdity of the Controversy
The situation is beyond laughable—it's repulsive. These are jobs paid for by American taxpayers, yet the workers refuse to respond to a simple email asking them to list five accomplishments. The obvious answer is that they don't do anything of value. They show up, get coffee, reshuffle papers, attend conference rooms, and leave by 3:30 or 4:00 PM. They operate as parasites on the American taxpayer.
Meanwhile, every person in the private sector—whether doctor, lawyer, engineer, or any other profession—must justify their existence every single day. Even someone working at McDonald's can easily list five tasks: cleaning the fryer, scrubbing floors, making Big Macs, ensuring the soda machine works, and helping customers to their cars in the snow. A McDonald's employee earning twelve dollars an hour can concretely explain their daily contributions.
But millions of federal workers are mass refusing this basic inquiry. They claim it's intimidating and scary. They're not accustomed to anyone asking them questions about their work.
A Missed Opportunity
This could have been an opportunity for federal employees to showcase their value. They could proudly list their five accomplishments from the Department of Interior or Health and Human Services. The task takes approximately two minutes: list five things in bullet format. Can these people not format bullets? Can they not read?
The mass decision not to respond to this inquiry reveals everything. If work is classified, employees can simply say so. But chances are the work isn't classified at all. Chances are there's nothing substantial to report. These workers simply exist as leeches on taxpayers.
What This Reveals About Government Culture
This situation surfaces what Elon Musk and President Trump are flushing out. The criticism isn't just about individual workers, though many deserve scrutiny. Many couldn't hold jobs at a local Chipotle. Your local Uber Eats driver or Chipotle worker works their tail off every day. But federal workers have cushy jobs where nothing gets done.
These positions never should have existed in the first place. Both Republicans and Democrats—George W. Bush alongside Bill Clinton, Barack Obama alongside Joe Biden—have been protectorates of this bipartisan regime, the uniparty. Millions of jobs should not exist. Entire government departments are famously filled with people taking months to accomplish what would take a day in a startup or real company.
The fact that asking a federal worker to take five or two minutes to explain what they do has become such a controversy proves the culture in government is rotten. The media is going along with it. MSNBC ran headlines about Musk forcing federal workers to justify their jobs. Yes, that's how things work in the real world—not the fantasy world of government where money is running out.
Challenging the DC Orthodoxy
The key takeaway is this: President Trump, Elon Musk, JD Vance, and Pete Hegseth are challenging the DC orthodoxy that government is untouchable. Government works for us. It is not a holy realm of existence immune to criticism or questioning.
The left will criticize every conservative nonprofit. They investigate Turning Point USA, document ballot chasers on the ground, and write exhaustively about right-wing organizations. But they will never criticize or ask questions about government itself.
This is not the government's money—it's our money. It's taxpayer money. We are a team together as taxpayers, and government has been taking advantage for decades.
The Campus-ification of America
Reading the email again raises the question: Is this intimidating? Does this require a safe space? This connects to the operating thesis from the book "The College Scam"—the college campus-ification of the entire country. You are not allowed to ask a junior at Yale what they learned. That's considered intimidation.
You're not allowed to have an exit test when leaving Stanford because that could be threatening. Safe spaces, speech codes, rooms with puppies and milk and cookies when something threatening is heard—these people are now staffing government.
What happens on college campuses doesn't stay there. It ends up in corporate boardrooms, the halls of Congress, and metastasizes into government. This is the same mentality that has been fought on college campuses for the last decade. We're finally starting to see a shift.
The Email One More Time
The email states: "Please reply to this email with approximately five bullet points of what you accomplished last week and CC your manager. Do not send any classified information, links, or attachments."
For every single person who has had a private sector job—millions listening and watching—you should be angered by this. These people think they are an untouchable holy class. They believe they have been given the divine right of kings. They think we serve at the pleasure of this oligarchy, that if you have a federal job, no one can ask questions or dare question your existence. We should just be lucky they'll acknowledge us.
Real World Examples
As someone who employs well over a thousand people, if America Fest were organized by the federal government, it would take four years to plan. It would cost five times as much, and there would be a single podium with five speakers.
The federal government is not just slow and bloated—it's largely 80 to 90 percent unnecessary. Of course there are core government functions that should exist, but the vast majority of these jobs should not. These workers are proving the point. They can't even respond to a crisp email explaining what they do and why they exist.
Your local school janitor can tell you what they do all day long. The person serving Starbucks coffee or Dunkin Donuts can detail their daily tasks. But the HR manager at the Department of Commerce claims it's against union rules.
The Fundamental Difference
The difference is crucial: when you go to Dunkin Donuts, that's a voluntary exchange. You decide to spend your money there. No one forces you. But you must pay your taxes or go to jail. Yet you can't ask the workers who take your taxes at gunpoint what they do all day long.
Video Transcript
0:00
an email heard around the world a
0:04
singular email that was sent last
0:08
week and the email was to ask every
0:11
federal worker so what do you do here
0:15
and what have you gotten
0:18
done the email was sent and it says
0:20
quote please reply this is sent to every
0:23
federal worker please reply to this
0:26
email with approximately five bullets of
0:29
what you accomplished last week and CC
0:33
your manager please do not send any
0:35
classified information links or
0:39
attachments deadline to reply is Monday
0:42
at 11:59 Eastern Standard
0:45
Time as soon as this email was sent
0:49
federal workers started to scream and
0:50
say what do you mean I have to tell you
0:52
what I do this is harassment this is
0:55
taunting this is unfair no one has ever
0:59
asked a federal worker what do you do
1:02
now we do this every single week at
1:03
Turning Point USA and turning point
1:05
action what do you do here tell us your
1:07
progress report in fact taking a page
1:10
out of Elon we're going to do this now
1:11
every single week methodically list of
1:13
five things you got
1:15
done federal workers are now clamoring
1:18
saying that this violates Union rules I
1:21
I'm sorry guys we this is beyond
1:23
laughable this is
1:25
repulsive these people have jobs that we
1:29
pay for and they can't respond to an
1:32
email asking them just list five things
1:34
you got done here and the answer of
1:37
course is they don't do anything of
1:39
value they show
1:41
up get a cup of coffee reshuffle some
1:45
papers go into a conference room and
1:48
they're out the door by 3:30 or
1:50
4:00 they operate as not them personally
1:53
but they operate as worthless parasites
1:56
on the American
1:58
taxpayer meanwhile every single one of
2:00
you in the audience
2:02
here whether you are a doctor or a
2:05
lawyer an
2:08
engineer in the private sector every day
2:11
you have to Justify Your Existence every
2:14
day even if you work at McDonald's even
2:17
if you work as a garbage man name five
2:20
things that you did at McDonald's well
2:21
today I cleaned the french fryer and I
2:25
scrubbed the floors and I made Big Macs
2:27
and I made sure the Diet Coke machine
2:29
was working and I helped the customer to
2:32
their car because she was struggling in
2:34
the snow five things great thank you
2:37
very much McDonald's employee of the
2:39
month earning $12 an
2:42
hour someone at McDonald's tells you
2:44
concretely what they do but if you dare
2:47
to ask our millions of federal workers
2:50
hey just tell us five bullet points of
2:52
what you did they are mass refusing this
2:55
inquiry it is intimidating they say it's
2:58
scary
3:00
they're not used to have anybody come in
3:01
and ask them a question in fact what a
3:04
chance to put out your chest oh yeah
3:08
Elon these are the five things that I do
3:10
at the department of interior these are
3:12
the five things I do at Health and Human
3:16
Services this could be done in two
3:18
minutes these are the five things I did
3:21
1 two 3 4 5 can these people not do
3:23
bullets can these people read I'm I'm
3:25
I'm getting to some very provocative
3:28
answers they are mass deciding not to
3:32
respond to this
3:34
inquiry if your work is all classified
3:37
just say so and chances are it's not
3:40
chances are you're not doing
3:43
anything that you can even report on you
3:45
simply exist you are a leech on us and
3:50
this is the core of what Elon is
3:54
surfacing what president Trump is
3:56
Flushing
3:58
out it's not even that they themselves
4:03
are worthy of the criticism which they
4:05
are a lot of these people are less than
4:08
desirable they they could not hold a job
4:11
at your local Chipotle in fact your
4:13
local Uber Eats driver your local
4:15
Chipotle worker they're working their
4:18
tail off every day and God bless them
4:20
but the Federal Federal Work O those are
4:22
plushy jobs where nothing is done these
4:25
jobs never should have existed in the
4:27
first place and both rep Republicans and
4:31
Democrats George W bush alongside Bill
4:34
Clinton alongside Barack Hussein Obama
4:36
alongside Joe Biden have been
4:38
protectorates of this
4:41
bipartisan
4:43
regime that we talk about a lot the unip
4:47
party where there are millions of jobs
4:49
that should not exist there are famously
4:52
entire Departments of the government
4:54
just filled with people taking months on
4:57
end to do what would take a day and a
4:59
startup or any real company the bottom
5:01
line it is so
5:03
telling that asking a federal worker to
5:07
take five minutes or two minutes to
5:09
explain what exactly you do here has
5:12
become such a controversy it proves that
5:14
the culture in government is rotten and
5:16
the media is going along with
5:18
it MSNBC right now has musk to federal
5:22
workers justify your job or else yes
5:24
that's the way things work in the real
5:28
world not the Fant world of government
5:31
cuz the money is running
5:34
out if there's only one takeaway from
5:37
our time together today that I want you
5:39
to internalize it's that President Trump
5:42
and Elon Musk and JD Vance and Pete heg
5:45
Seth are challenging the DC Orthodoxy
5:49
that government is Untouchable
5:51
government works for us they are not a
5:54
holy realm of existence that we are not
5:56
allowed to criticize that we are not
5:58
allowed to question
6:00
now mind you the left they will
6:02
criticize every conservative nonprofit
6:04
they'll investigate Turning Point USA
6:06
they'll find out how many ballot Chasers
6:08
we have on the ground they'll write at
6:10
nauseum about anything in right-wing
6:12
world but they will never criticize or
6:14
lift a finger asking a question about
6:17
the government this is not the
6:19
government's money it is our money this
6:22
is your money we are a team together in
6:26
this as us taxpayers and they have been
6:28
ficing us
6:30
over the last couple of decades and let
6:32
me just read the email again is this
6:35
intimidating to you does this require a
6:37
safe space does this make you have to
6:38
run away and this goes to my operating
6:41
thesis that I wrote in that book back
6:43
there the college scam which I said this
6:46
is the college campus ification that's
6:48
not a word but I made it up of the
6:50
entire country you are not allowed to
6:53
ask a junior at
6:56
Yale what did you learn here that's
6:58
intimidation
7:01
you're not allowed to have an
7:03
exit test when you leave Stanford that
7:07
could be
7:09
threatening safe spaces speech codes
7:12
rooms with puppies and milk and cookies
7:14
if you hear something threatening these
7:16
people are now Staffing your government
7:18
as we have always said what happens on
7:20
college campuses does not stay in
7:21
college campuses it ends up in corporate
7:23
boardrooms the halls of Congress and
7:26
metastasizes into your government this
7:29
is the same mentality that I've have
7:31
been fighting for the last decade on
7:32
college campuses that we are finally
7:34
starting to see a shift and again this
7:36
is the email please reply to this email
7:38
with approximately five bullet points of
7:40
what you accomplished last week and CC
7:42
your manager do not send any classifi
7:44
information links or
7:47
attachments for every single person out
7:50
there that has had a private sector job
7:53
and there are millions of you listening
7:54
and watching you should be angered and
7:56
sensed by this that these people think
7:59
that they are an Untouchable holy class
8:01
they think they have been given the
8:03
divine right of
8:05
kings that we serve at the pleasure of
8:08
this oligarchy that if you have a
8:10
federal job we can't ask a question we
8:13
can't dare question Your Existence we
8:17
are just lucky that you'll mention
8:21
us as an example and I could tell you as
8:24
somebody who has employed employs well
8:26
over a thousand people if America Fest
8:28
was organized by the federal government
8:30
it would take four years to plan it out
8:32
it would cost five times as much and
8:34
there would be like a single Podium with
8:37
five
8:38
speakers the federal government is not
8:41
just slow and blow inefficient it's
8:44
largely become 80% unnecessary of course
8:47
there's core function the federal
8:48
government that should exist 80% of
8:50
these jobs should not exist 90% should
8:52
not exist and they're proving our point
8:55
they can't even respond to a crisp email
8:58
this is what I do this is why I exist
9:01
your local janitor at a school could
9:03
tell you what they do all day
9:05
long the person that serves you your
9:07
Starbucks coffee or serves you your
9:10
Dunkin Donuts can tell to do it all day
9:12
long but no the HR manager at Department
9:16
of Commerce it's against Union rules and
9:19
the difference is this when you go to
9:21
Dunkin Donuts that's a voluntary
9:23
exchange you are deciding to spend your
9:25
money at Dunkin Donuts no one did that
9:27
in a mandatory way but you must pay your
9:29
taxes or you go to jail but you can't
9:32
ask the workers that take your taxes at
9:34
gunpoint what do you do all day long