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,

As the deadline approaches, agencies have amped up the pressure on employees, sending frequent “reminders” and a copy of the contract they would have to sign to accept the deferred resignation.