Musk is "an employee of the White House Office" and "holds a position as a non-career Special Government Employee," the filing said. "Like other senior White House advisors, Mr Musk has no actual or formal authority to make government decisions himself."

Among the hundreds of people protesting in front of the U.S. Capitol on Monday were recently fired federal workers left devastated and uncertain by their terminations.

Hundreds of federal workers process thousands of retirement applications every month, by hand in a converted former mine.