White House says some employees were fired by mistake

After taking the recent buyout offer, some employees were fired, a source said.

ByAlexandra Hutzler, Emily Chang, Kevin Shalvey, Meredith Deliso, Julia Reinstein, Ivan Pereira, and Jon Haworth
Last Updated: February 16, 2025, 11:07 PM EST

President Donald Trump's administration, including Elon Musk's Department of Government Efficiency, is continuing its sweeping effort to cut much of the federal government -- but it's being met with legal challenges.

Trump is also making his second administration's first forays on the diplomatic front with calls to Russia's Vladimir Putin and Ukraine's Volodymyr Zelenskyy on ending the 3-year-old war that began in February 2022 when Russia invaded Ukraine.

And a day after Hamas released more hostages taken when it attacked Israel in October 2023, Secretary of State Marco Rubio agreed with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that the militant organization needs to be "eliminated."

Latest headlines:

Here's how the news is developing.
Feb 13, 2025, 3:11 PM EST

Trump admits tariffs could drive prices up in the short term

President Trump, who vowed on the campaign trail to immediately bring down prices for American families, acknowledged that there could be some financial pain associated with tariffs as he signed a memo initiating the process for potential reciprocal tariffs on some U.S. trading partners.

"Prices could go up somewhat short term, but prices will also go down," Trump said as he took questions in the Oval Office.

President Donald Trump delivers remarks after signing an executive order on reciprocal tariffs in the Oval Office at the White House on Feb. 13, 2025 in Washington.
Andrew Harnik/Getty Images

Trump repeated multiple times that the tariffs will result in job growth, telling reporters "the jobs will go up tremendously." He also argued that they will help American farmers and manufacturers.

"There could be some short-term disturbance, but long term, it's going to it's going to make our country a fortune," Trump said.

Feb 13, 2025, 2:36 PM EST

Alexander Vinnik on a flight back to Moscow

Cybercrime kingpin Alexander Vinnik is on a flight back to Moscow, his lawyer confirmed to ABC News.

Vinnik is being released into Russian custody as part of an exchange for American Marc Fogel.

Alexander Vinnik, a 38 year old Russian man suspected of running a money laundering operation using bitcoin, is escorted by police officers to a court in Athens, Greece Dec. 13, 2017.
Costas Baltas/Reuters

Vinnik was sent to Turkey and is now on a flight to Moscow. His attorney said he didn't know the exact airport of arrival but noted that the arrival would be "in a few hours."

-ABC News' William Gretsky

Feb 13, 2025, 12:53 PM EST

Another lawsuit asks federal court to block resignation program, mass firings

A group of federal unions is suing the Trump administration to block its attempt to “decimate” the federal workforce through its deferred resignation program and the expected mass firings of hundreds of thousands of government employees.

The unions accuse the Trump administration of attempting to “usurp” Congress’s authority and asked a federal court to order the government to declare the resignation program unlawful as well as block planned reductions in force.

-ABC News' Peter Charalambous

Feb 13, 2025, 12:23 PM EST

Senate confirms Brooke Rollins as Secretary of Agriculture

Brooke Rollins, President Donald Trump's nominee to be Agriculture Secretary, speaks during her Senate Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry Committee confirmation hearing in the Dirksen building, Jan. 23, 2025 in Washington.
Kayla Bartkowski/Getty Images

The Senate has confirmed Brooke Rollins to serve as the Secretary of Agriculture by a vote of 72-28.

She was confirmed with the support of all Republicans and 19 Democrats.

-ABC News' Allie Pecorin

Related Topics

Sponsored Content by Taboola