We're talking a 60-second email that can even be cut-and-pasted from the previous day's email. It's not a Powerpoint presentation.

If OP really wants to hold onto the job this is a tactic to keep the termination at bay and micromanaging to a minimum...possibly. It's also a backup where if bnt is fired and wishes to get a lawyer in the mix, he has an audit trail. Boss might say "bnt did nothing" when the email in fact shows he was working as best as he possibly could and was completing tasks and boss was acknowledging those completions.

You probably have as much insight as I do about bnt's location, family situation, cash reserves, and local job market conditions. "Leave ASAP" could be a week or it could be 6 months.