The Senate Thursday evening advanced President Donald Trump’s nominee to head the Department of Energy to a final confirmation vote.

The vote was 62-35. 

Chris Wright, the CEO and founder of Liberty Energy Inc., an energy industry service provider based in Colorado, was tapped by the 47th president to head the  Department of Energy under his administration.

The Trump nominee has received bipartisan support for his nomination, being introduced by a Democrat, Sen. John Hickenlooper of Colorado, during his confirmation hearing with the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee this month.

The Senate held a late-night cloture vote for Wright, to end discussion over his nomination. 

The cloture vote passed with bipartisan support, meaning Wright will advance to a final Senate vote, likely to take place on Friday.

Wright, during his confirmation hearing, said he had identified three ‘immediate tasks’ where he would focus his attention: unleashing American energy, leading the world in innovation and technology breakthroughs and increasing production in America.

The Senate has confirmed President Donald Trump’s pick to lead the Interior Department, former North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum. 

He secured confirmation with significant bipartisan support and a 79-18 vote.

On Wednesday, senators voted by a 78–20 margin to close debate and move the nomination to a final vote.

Burgum appeared before the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee in mid-January, where he told lawmakers that national security issues and the economy were his top two priorities for leading the agency. 

‘When energy production is restricted in America, it doesn’t reduce demand,’ Burgum said in his opening statement on Jan. 16. ‘It just shifts production to countries like Russia and Iran, whose autocratic leaders not only don’t care at all about the environment, but they use their revenues from energy sales to fund wars against us and our allies.’

Lawmakers, including Sen. Mazie Hirono, D-Hawaii, questioned Burgum on whether he would permit oil drilling in national parks if Trump asked him to.

‘As part of my sworn duty, I’ll follow the law and follow the Constitution. And so you can count on that,’ Burgum said. ‘And I have not heard of anything about President Trump wanting to do anything other than advancing energy production for the benefit of the American people.’

Burgum served as governor of North Dakota from 2016 to 2024. He also launched a presidential bid for the 2024 election in June 2023, and energy and natural resources were key issues during his campaign.

Burgum appeared during the first two Republican presidential debates, but didn’t qualify for the third and ended his campaign in December 2023. He endorsed Trump for the GOP nomination a month later ahead of the Iowa caucuses.

Aubrie Spady, Sarah Rumpf-Whitten and Paul Steinhauser contributed to this report.

The top Republican on the Senate’s chief health committee, Sen. Bill Cassidy, R-La., indicated Thursday during Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s second confirmation hearing of the week that his vote for Trump’s nominee to head Health and Human Services was not a lock, noting that he was ‘struggling’ to confirm Kennedy over his inability to admit vaccines are safe and don’t cause autism.

Kennedy faced two separate hearings in front of Senate lawmakers this week in his bid to be the next secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services. Kennedy was probed frequently over his views on vaccines, which have been a sticking point for many senators as they figure out whether to vote in favor of Kennedy’s nomination or not.

During the hearings, Kennedy refused to reject claims he has posited publicly in the past that vaccines cause autism and argued he is not anti-vaccine but rather ‘pro-safety.’ Kennedy added during the hearings that his plan as HHS secretary would be to ‘follow the science,’ noting that if the science says he is wrong on vaccines, he will publicly apologize. 

But senators, like Cassidy, have suggested during Kennedy’s confirmation hearings that the science says vaccines are safe — and they don’t cause autism.

‘My responsibility is to learn, try and determine, if you can be trusted to support the best public health,’ Cassidy, a former physician, said during his closing remarks at Kennedy’s Thursday confirmation hearing in front of the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP). ‘A worthy movement called ‘MAHA,’’ Cassidy continued, ‘to improve the health of Americans, or to undermine it, always asking for more evidence, and never accepting the evidence that is there … That is why I’ve been struggling with your nomination.’ 

Cassidy repeatedly asked Kennedy during the Thursday hearing to publicly declare that vaccines don’t cause autism, but he refused. ‘That would have an incredible impact,’ Cassidy said. 

‘There are issues we are, man, ultra-processed food, obesity, we are simpatico. We are completely aligned,’ Cassidy continued during his closing remarks. ‘And as someone who has discussed immunizations with thousands of people, I understand that mothers want reassurance that the vaccine their child is receiving is necessary, safe and effective. We agree on that point, the two of us, but we’ve approached it differently. And I think I can say that I’ve approached it using the preponderance of evidence to reassure, and you’ve approached it using selective evidence to cast doubt.’

Meanwhile, Cassidy pointed out the massive ‘megaphone’ Kennedy has as a descendant of former President John F. Kennedy, and questioned whether he will use his credibility ‘to support’ or ‘to undermine’ the nation’s public health and its confidence in vaccines.

‘I got to figure that out, for my vote,’ Cassidy said.

Conservatives on social media praised Kash Patel, President Donald Trump’s nominee for FBI director, after a thorny exchange with Sen. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., during his confirmation hearing on Thursday.

That’s a general statement and a mischaracterization of what I said,’ Patel told Klobuchar in response to questioning about a past quote that the senator suggested showed Patel believes some U.S. Capitol Police officers lied under oath during the Jan. 6 hearings. 

‘I encourage you to read the rest of the interviews,’ Patel added. ‘This is why snippets of information are often misleading and detrimental to this committee’s advice and consent.’

Klobuchar responded, ‘If you consent, I would love to have five hours of questions, and then I could read the whole transcripts.’

‘You’ve got two minutes,’ Patel responded.

‘Wow,’ Klobuchar replied before moving to another topic.

Numerous conservatives on social media praised Patel for his ‘sass’ during the exchange.

‘Amy Klobuchar continues to get outmaneuvered by Kash Patel at every turn of this committee hearing,’ Townhall.com columnist Dustin Grage posted on X.

‘Damnnnn,’ Mark Levin show producer Rich Sementa posted on X. ‘Kash Patel For The Win.’

‘SAVAGE,’ conservative commentator Benny Johnson posted on X.

‘My favorite moment from this hearing,’ former Trump campaign fundraiser Caroline Wren posted on X. 

Fox News Digital reached out to Klobuchar’s office for comment.

The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) launched an investigation into media outlets PBS and National Public Radio (NPR) over member stations potentially airing ‘prohibited commercial advertisements,’ according to a letter obtained by The New York Times. 

‘I am concerned that NPR and PBS broadcasts could be violating federal law by airing commercials,’ FCC chair Brendan Carr wrote, according to the Times. ‘In particular, it is possible that NPR and PBS member stations are broadcasting underwriting announcements that cross the line into prohibited commercial advertisements.’

The FCC allows businesses to support noncommercial radio and television stations — such as NPR, PBS or college radio stations — via on-air announcements known as underwriting sponsorships. The sponsorships, though similar to advertisements, face different FCC rules than typical TV or radio ads. 

Carr sent the letters Wednesday to NPR CEO Katherine Maher and PBS CEO Paula Kerger, according to the Times. He has been a member of the FCC since 2017, and was appointed by President Donald Trump to serve as the commission’s chair under his second administration. 

Carr continued in his letter that he will alert Congress to the investigation, noting that lawmakers already are weighing whether NPR and PBS should receive taxpayer funds. 

‘In particular, Congress is actively considering whether to stop requiring taxpayers to subsidize NPR and PBS programming,’ he wrote, according to the Times. 

‘To the extent that these taxpayer dollars are being used to support a for profit endeavor or an entity that is airing commercial advertisements, then that would further undermine any case for continuing to fund NPR and PBS with taxpayer dollars,’ he continued. 

Fox News Digital reached out to the FCC regarding the letter and the Times’ report, but did not immediately receive a response. 

NPR chief Maher said in response to the letter that NPR’s sponsorship practices ‘complies with federal regulations.’  

‘NPR programming and underwriting messaging complies with federal regulations, including the FCC guidelines on underwriting messages for noncommercial educational broadcasters, and Member stations are expected to be in compliance as well,’ Maher said in a statement provided to Fox News Digital on Thursday. 

‘We are confident any review of our programming and underwriting practices will confirm NPR’s adherence to these rules,’ Maher said. ‘We have worked for decades with the FCC in support of noncommercial educational broadcasters who provide essential information, educational programming, and emergency alerts to local communities across the United States.’ 

PBS added in comment to Fox Digital that it is also complies with ‘the FCC’s underwriting regulations.’

‘PBS is proud of the noncommercial educational programming we provide to all Americans through our member stations. We work diligently to comply with the FCC’s underwriting regulations and welcome the opportunity to demonstrate that to the Commission,’ a PBS spokesperson said. 

NPR and PBS are both public broadcasting organizations, and both are bracing to potentially lose public funding under the Trump administration. 

‘NO MORE FUNDING FOR NPR, A TOTAL SCAM!’ Trump wrote in a post on Truth Social in April 2024, potentially previewing their fate under his second administration. ‘THEY ARE A LIBERAL DISINFORMATION MACHINE. NOT ONE DOLLAR!!!’

Republican members of Congress also have introduced bills that would defund the public broadcasting organizations, such as Louisiana Sen. John Kennedy and Pennsylvania Rep. Scott Perry introducing the No Propaganda Act in December 2024.  

‘The American Taxpayer is footing the bill for a woke media corporation that pretends to be impartial while pushing Chinese propaganda,’ Perry said when introducing the legislation. The Corporation for Public Broadcasting ‘cannot be allowed to keep using your hard-earned tax dollars to push a biased and political agenda that goes against what’s best for Americans.’ 

Carr’s name recognition grew large right ahead of the Nov. 5, 2024, election, when he lambasted NBC’s decision to host former Vice President Kamala Harris on ‘Saturday Night Live’ in the final episode ahead of Election Day, but did not offer equal time to Trump or other candidates in the presidential cycle. 

The FCC’s equal-time rule was established in 1934, and requires radio and television broadcast stations to provide the same amount of time for competing political candidates. There are exceptions to the rule, such as newscasts, documentaries and political debates.

‘NBC has structured this in a way that’s plainly designed to evade the FCC’s rules. We’re talking 50 hours before Election Day starts, without any notice to other candidates, as far as I can tell,’ Carr told Fox News Digital at the time. ‘And after previously coming out and saying they weren’t going to do this precisely because they did not believe that they could do this consistent with election laws and the FCC’s equal time rule.’

NBC ultimately filed an equal time notice amid outrage over Harris’ appearance. 

Trump appointed Carr to lead the FCC shortly after his November 2024 election win, with Carr taking the helm of the commission in January. Carr was first nominated to the commission by Trump during his first administration, and served as the senior Republican member of the FCC until his appointment as chair. 

‘Commissioner Carr is a warrior for Free Speech, and has fought against the regulatory Lawfare that has stifled Americans’ Freedoms, and held back our Economy,’ Trump said in a statement about the appointment. ‘He will end the regulatory onslaught that has been crippling America’s Job Creators and Innovators, and ensure that the FCC delivers for rural America.’

Kash Patel, President Donald Trump’s pick to head the FBI, pledged Thursday to work with a top Republican senator on exposing who worked with Jeffrey Epstein in trafficking and exploiting children.

Sen. Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., quizzed Patel about how he would handle the Epstein case. The sex-trafficking financier died in 2019 while awaiting trial. Nearly 200 names that had previously been redacted from court documents in a lawsuit against his accomplice Ghislaine Maxwell were made public last year.

However, Blackburn said there is still more to be known, including the names of those who flew on his plane and accomplices.

‘I want to talk to you about the Epstein case. I have worked on this for years trying to get those records of who flew on Epstein’s plane and who helped him build this international human trafficking sex trafficking ring,’ she said.

She used her remarks to take a jab at former Judiciary Chairman Dick Durbin.

‘Now, earlier, I urged then Chairman Durbin to subpoena those records, and I ended up being blocked by Senator Durbin and Christopher Wray. They stonewalled on this,’ she said. ‘And I know that breaking up these trafficking rings is important to President Trump. So will you work with me on this issue? So we know who worked with Jeffrey Epstein in building these sex trafficking rings?’ she asked.

‘Absolutely, Senator,’ Patel responded. ‘Child sex trafficking has no place in the United States of America. And I will do everything, if confirmed as FBI director, to make sure the American public knows the full weight of what happened in the past and how we are going to counterman missing children and exploited children going forward,’ he said.

Following the exchange between Blackburn and Patel, Durbin requested to respond to Blackburn’s jab at him and accused the Tennessee senator of ‘falsely’ accusing him ‘of preventing releasing the names of Jeffrey Epstein’s network.’

‘My office subsequently reached out to hers to try to identify what records she was actually seeking. We did not receive a response,’ he added.

Blackburn fired back and said she had ‘raised the issue with Chairman Durbin. I had raised it on the floor that we wanted to get these records… You sought not to recognize me.’

Patel’s nomination has sparked early criticism from some Democrats ahead of his confirmation hearing, who have cited his previous vows to prosecute journalists and career officials at the Justice Department and FBI that he sees as being part of the ‘deep state.’

Democrats had pointed to Patel’s record and a book, ‘Government Gangsters,’ released in 2023 that claimed that ‘deep state’ government employees have politicized and weaponized the law enforcement agency – and explicitly called for the revamp of the FBI in a chapter dubbed ‘Overhauling the FBI.’

Fox News’ Emma Colton and Michael Ruiz contributed to this report.