White House says some employees were fired by mistake

Longtime Sen. Mitch McConnell released a statement explaining his decision to vote against RFK Jr.'s nomination. He was the sole Republican to do so.

A polio survivor, McConnell recounted his own childhood experience overcoming the disease and said he will "not condone the re-litigation of proven cures."

"This Administration -- led by the same President who delivered a medical miracle with Project Warp Speed -- deserves a leader who is willing to acknowledge without qualification the efficacy of life-saving vaccines and who can demonstrate an understanding of basic elements of the U.S. health care system," McConnell said.

"Mr. Kennedy failed to prove he is the best possible person to lead America's largest health agency. As he takes office, I sincerely hope Mr. Kennedy will choose not to sow further doubt and division but to restore trust in our public health institutions," he added.

-ABC News' Allison Pecorin

Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s nomination to serve as secretary of Health and Human Services was officially confirmed in the Senate on Thursday.

The final vote was 52 to 48. Sen. Mitch McConnell, a polio survivor, was the sole Republican to vote against Kennedy.

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said on Fox News that Kennedy is expected to be sworn into office later Thursday at the White House, and that President Donald Trump is expected to sign an executive order establishing a "Make America Healthy Again" commission.

Kennedy's confirmation comes after months of controversy and debate, largely focused on his past comments casting doubt on the safety and efficacy of vaccines.

An environmental lawyer with no experience working in public health administration or medicine, Kennedy will now oversee a sprawling network of agencies that provide health coverage to millions of Americans, regulate the food industry and respond to global health threats.

The Senate Judiciary Committee voted 12 to 10 to advance Kash Patel's nomination to be FBI director to the Senate floor.

Committee chairman Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, offered a full-throated defense of Patel ahead of the vote. Several Democrats also spoke and reiterated their concerns with his nomination.

Democrats have raised many questions about his nomination, including his comments that he planned to fire agents, his support for Jan. 6 rioters and his invoking of the Fifth Amendment during an investigation that lead to Trump being indicted over his mishandling of classified documents.

The U.S. Department of Education let go dozens of "probationary employees" on Wednesday, according to two sources familiar with the firings. The letters were sent to roughly 40 employees on Wednesday evening, the sources said.

The news comes as President Donald Trump called the Education Department a "con job" that should be "closed immediately." The president has also directed Elon Musk to investigate the agency.

Gutting the department was one of Trump's signature campaign promises, and in recent weeks, he has prepared an executive order directing the education secretary to diminish the department and Congress to pass legislation to get rid of it.

Meanwhile, Musk's Department of Government Efficiency made sizable cuts to the agency earlier this week, slashing 89 critical independent research contracts at the department's Institute of Education Sciences (IES) worth nearly $900 million, according to a DOGE post on X and confirmed by a department spokesperson.

A handful of people working with Musk's DOGE were spotted at the Department of Education last week and some now have access to the agency's records and files, according to sources familiar. The DOGE workers are also in the department's email directory, meaning they were hired as ED employees. Dozens more ED employees are still on indefinite paid administrative leave for taking part in diversity trainings that occurred during Trump's first term.

The Education Department is the smallest cabinet-level agency with 4,400 employees. Another 1,400 employees work in the agency's office of Federal Student Aid.

-ABC News' Arthur Jones II