The department said Monday that replying to Elon Musk’s request is voluntary and there will be no penalties for nonresponse.

Rachel Maddow highlights another set of firings of critical federal employees by Elon Musk's staff that doesn't seem to understand the government they're butchering, this time the administration is frantically trying to re-enlist crucial USDA workers focused on birth flu.

Maine farmers say they're caught up in the federal funding freeze. The USDA has paused all grant payments under direction from Elon Musk, DOGE and President Donald Trump. Wolfe's Neck Center in Freeport operates under a reimbursement-style grant with the USDA.

US federal employees were told not to reply to an email sent by Elon Musk in which he asked them what they got done last week - and threatened to sack those who didn't reply

Ag Secretary Brooke Rollins vows to 'make eggs affordable again' by pumping $1 billion into fighting bird flu, which has cut consumer supplies.

The president’s company Trump Media Group filed a lawsuit against Brazilian Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes in U.S. federal court in Tampa, Florida, Wednesday, accusing him of censoring free speech by restricting the company’s Truth Social platform. Video platform Rumble, popular with the right wing, is also a plaintiff in the lawsuit.

The department is trying to rehire the employees as avian influenza causes egg prices to soar and as Elon Musk’s DOGE makes sweeping cuts to government agencies.

Federal employees are raising alarms over Elon Musk’s push to reshape the US government, an effort now compounded by a weekend directive for workers to justify their jobs in writing. The mounting pressure has left many in the federal workforce feeling vulnerable.

With an emphasis on tightening up biosecurity on farms, Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins said the USDA will invest another $1 billion on top of the roughly $2 billion it has already spent battling bird flu since the outbreak began in 2022. Officials had hinted at the plan earlier this month.

So far, the bird flu outbreak has led to the death of 22 million birds in the last 30 days, sent the price of eggs skyrocketing, infected 68 people, and resulted in the death of one person. But some experts believe that it can, and will, get worse.

The Elon Musk-led effort listed the ceiling value of the contract and duplicated parts of the award in its list of savings.