White House says some employees were fired by mistake

New York Gov. Kathy Hochul on Wednesday evening replied to Attorney General Pam Bondi's claim that the Department of Justice was taking legal action against the State of New York over its alleged resistance to President Donald Trump's illegal immigration crackdown.

In the statement, Hochul said that Bondi "marched in front of the television cameras for a dramatic media briefing to announce she was filing charges against New York State related to our immigration laws" earlier that day. But it turned out to be "smoke and mirrors" because the DOJ was actually filing what Hochul called "a routine civil action about a law passed in 2019 that has been upheld by the courts time and again."

"Here are the facts: our current laws allow federal immigration officials to access any DMV database with a judicial warrant. That's a common-sense approach that most New Yorkers support. But there's no way I'm letting federal agents, or Elon Musk's shadowy DOGE operation, get unfettered access to the personal data of any New Yorker in the DMV system like 16-year-old kids learning to drive and other vulnerable people," the statement continued.

Calling the action a "worthless, publicity-driven lawsuit," Hochul predicted that it would be a "total failure."

"Let me be clear: New York is not backing down," she said.

-ABC News' Peter Charalambous

President Donald Trump met with American Airlines CEO Robert Isom on Wednesday, marking their first in-person meeting since the airline was involved in a deadly collision with a military helicopter last month in Washington, D.C. The crash left 67 dead on Jan. 29.

Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy was also present with Trump and Isom to discuss "ways to make investments in a state-of-the-art air traffic system that enhances aviation safety," according to a spokesperson for the airline.

In a statement provided to ABC News on Wednesday night, American Airlines said, "Robert thanked President Trump for his leadership and commitment to take bold action on investments in aviation safety. The American Airlines team will continue to work together with President Trump, Secretary Duffy, Congress and the entire aviation industry to make our systems even safer."

-ABC News' Katherine Faulders and Sam Sweeney

The Senate has pushed back the time members are scheduled to vote on Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s nomination to serve as health and human services secretary to later in the morning on Thursday.

The vote was slated to occur during the early hours, but the change means the final confirmation vote for RFK Jr. will now occur around 10:30 a.m. ET.

-ABC News' Isabella Murray

After a Boston judge ruled in favor of the Trump administration's buyout program, the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) sent an email to federal employees informing them that the deferred resignation offer is now closed.

The email, with the subject "The Fork in the Road is Closed," was sent from the same hr@opm.gov address that previously informed federal employees across agencies of the offer.

"The Deferred Resignation Program is now closed. Any resignations received after 7:20pmET, February 12, 2025, will not be accepted," the entire message reads, according to an email obtained by ABC News.

One staffer told ABC News they received the email nearly 40 minutes past the stated 7:20 p.m. deadline to respond.

-ABC News' Will Steakin