Musk appears to be bringing his Twitter takeover playbook to the public sector, and, as they did at the social media company, his moves are causing chaos and confusion for federal workers. The richest man in the world has attempted to reduce costs and gut entire departments,

But when it comes to Washington, it’s Twitter that has become real life—inspiring Musk in his quest to reshape the federal government and exert influence over American politics.

Federal agencies have offered exits to millions of employees and tested the prowess of engineers — just like when Elon Musk bought Twitter. The similarities have been uncanny.