Musk, Ramaswamy eye 5-day work week for federal workers

Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy - President-elect Donald Trump's picks to lead the newly formed task force to review government spending - said they will push for eliminating work-from-home policies for federal workers, an idea that could spark clashes between the new administration and government employee unions.

"Requiring federal employees to come to the office five days a week would result in a wave of voluntary terminations that we welcome: If federal employees don't want to show up, American taxpayers shouldn't pay them for the Covid-era privilege of staying home," they wrote in a Wall Street Journal op-ed on Wednesday.

Musk and Ramaswamy said the new Department of Government Efficiency - which will be set up outside the government, but advise the White House on budget and spending issues - would help reduce the federal workforce by compelling employees to resign. In the op-ed, they said they would serve in their roles as 'outside volunteers, not federal officials or employees.'

A full return to office for federal employees could shore up the local Washington, DC economy, since post-pandemic office vacancy rates remain high and economic activity in the city's downtown has plateaued at 68 per cent of pre-pandemic levels, per a 2023 report from the Downtown DC Business Improvement District. DC Mayor Muriel Bowser has asked President Joe Biden to bring employees back to the office - or relinquish office real estate - in a bid to revive the city's downtown.

There are more than two million federal workers and over 400 agencies across the country. Eighty per cent of federal employees work outside of Washington, according to the Partnership for Public Service.

If officially embraced by Trump, the return-to-office has the potential to set off a wave of fights between the White House and the labor unions that cover employees at many federal agencies. Some workplaces have longstanding tele-work arrangements that predate the Covid-19 pandemic.

Musk, the CEO of Tesla Inc. and SpaceX, has panned work-from-home policies, telling CNBC in 2023 that tech workers should "get off the goddamn moral high horse with the work-from-home."

Here's the latest on Trump's transition:

Ambassador to Canada

Trump is nominating former Representative Pete Hoekstra of Michigan to be the US ambassador to Canada. Hoekstra previously served as Trump's ambassador to the Netherlands during his first term and is the chair of the Republican Party in Michigan - a swing state the president-elect carried in this month's election.

"In my Second Term, Pete will help me once again put AMERICA FIRST," Trump said in a statement. "He did an outstanding job as United States Ambassador to the Netherlands during our first four years, and I am confident that he will continue to represent our Country well in this new role."

During his first term, Trump scrapped the North American Free Trade Agreement, which he had said was costing the US jobs and negotiated a successor pact, the US-Mexico-Canada Agreement, or USMCA, a move he touted in his statement.

"We brought Trade with Mexico and Canada to a level playing field for our wonderful Farmers and Working Families," Trump said.

Trade policy will be at the forefront of Trump's second administration as well, with the president-elect floating 10% or 20% baseline tariffs on all imports, with higher rates for China.

Trump opposes Press Freedom Bill

Trump urged Republicans to block a bill aimed at protecting press freedom.

"REPUBLICANS MUST KILL THIS BILL!," Trump wrote in a post to his Truth Social network, linking to a video from PBS News Hour discussing the Protect Reporters from Exploitative State Spying Act, known as the PRESS Act.

Supporters of the measure say that it would protect journalists from being spied on by the federal government, allowing them to keep their sources and materials, such as writings, recordings and photographs, confidential.

The bill passed the US House earlier this year and is now before the Senate.

Advocacy group Reporters Without Borders earlier this month urged Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and Democrats to pass the law before the current Congress ends, calling it a "commonsense, bipartisan press shield" and warning that Trump and Republicans who will control the Senate in January will be unwilling to enact such legislation.

Trump's post urging Republicans to block the PRESS Act comes days after the president-elect sought to downplay tensions with the media, which he regularly criticizes and claims is biased.

"It is very important "- if not vital "- to have a free, fair and open media or press," Trump said in an interview with Fox News Digital on Monday, adding that he believes he has an "obligation" to work with the media.

The president-elect during the campaign regularly attacked the press as "fake news" and has sued CBS Broadcasting Inc., alleging it altered clips of an interview with his general election rival, Vice President Kamala Harris.

NATO envoy pick

Trump has picked Republican lawyer Matthew Whitaker to be the US Ambassador to NATO, selecting a former loyal aide from his first administration as his envoy to an international alliance he regularly criticizes.

"I have full confidence in Matt's ability to represent the United States with Strength, Integrity, and unwavering Dedication," Trump said in a statement on Wednesday. "I look forward to working closely with him as we continue to promote PEACE THROUGH STRENGTH, Freedom, and Prosperity around the World."

Trump has assailed NATO allies over their defense spending. On the campaign trail he has threatened that the US will not come to the aid of allies who do not spend enough for their own militaries. The NATO post requires Senate confirmation.

In Whitaker, 55, Trump has enlisted a trusted ally who was a center of controversy as the nation's top law enforcement official. He served as acting attorney general from November 2018 to February 2019 after Trump forced out his first attorney general, Jeff Sessions.

Whitaker has accused Special Counsel Jack Smith of using "novel legal theories" to charge Trump with crimes in order to interfere with the 2024 election. Smith brought two cases against Trump, one for allegedly trying to overturn the 2020 election and the other accusing him of mishandling classified information and obstructing justice after he left office.

As acting attorney general, Whitaker oversaw Special Counsel Robert Mueller's investigation into whether Trump conspired with Russia to interfere in the 2016 election. At the time, critics feared that Whitaker would interfere with Mueller's investigation or shut it down. However, he allowed Mueller to continue unimpeded.

Gaetz meets Graham

Senator Lindsey Graham, the top Republican on the Senate Judiciary Committee, said he was committed to handling the nomination of Trump's choice for attorney general, Matt Gaetz, with "fairness" and urged lawmakers not to rush to judgment after a meeting with the controversial pick on Wednesday.

Graham in a statement urged fellow Republicans to allow the confirmation process to play out and allow Gaetz, who is facing intense scrutiny over a House sexual misconduct probe, to make his case for being the nation's top law enforcement official.

"I tend to defer to presidential cabinet choices unless the evidence suggests disqualification," Graham said. "I fear the process surrounding the Gaetz nomination is turning into an angry mob, and unverified allegations are being treated as if they are true."

Republicans will be in control of the Senate in January, but Gaetz's confirmation is not assured.

Gaetz and Graham were joined in the meeting by Vice President-elect JD Vance, an Ohio senator. Vance is arranging sit-downs between key Republicans and two of Trump's most controversial selections for his cabinet, Gaetz and Pete Hegseth, a Fox News Channel host and Army National Guard member, who has been tapped for Defense secretary.

Hegseth has been accused of sexual assault while Gaetz has been investigated for sexual misconduct. Both have denied any wrongdoing.

The House Ethics Committee, which has faced pressure to publicize its findings on the sexual misconduct probe into Gaetz, on Wednesday voted to keep confidential its report, the panel's top Democrat said.

All of the panel's GOP members voted to block the report's release, Democratic Representative Susan Wild of Pennsylvania said after the committee met behind closed doors for more than two hours. Democrats seeking to disclose the findings needed at least one Republican to back them, she said.

The Justice Department investigated allegations that Gaetz had sex with a minor in exchange for money but decided in February 2023 not to file any charges against him. Gaetz has denied the allegations.

Gaetz resigned from Congress days before the Ethics committee was scheduled to deliberate on how to handle results from its investigation.