Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has fired two top deputies at the Department of Health and Human Services, ABC News has learned.

Heather Flick Melanson, Kennedy's chief of staff, and Hannah Anderson, deputy chief of staff of policy, are departing, according to a department spokesperson and another person familiar with the decisions.

No reason was given for the ousters. The person familiar with the situation told ABC that Kennedy "has every right to make personnel decisions."

Neither Flick nor Anderson immediately responded to an ABC News request for comment.

"Secretary Kennedy has made a leadership change within the Immediate Office of the Secretary," according to a statement provided by an HHS spokesperson to ABC News. "Effective immediately, Matt Buckham will serve as Acting Chief of Staff."

"Mr. Buckham currently serves as Kennedy’s White House liaison at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, where he oversees the recruitment and onboarding of political appointees across the agency. He brings valuable experience in personnel strategy and organizational management to this new role," the statement continued.

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President Donald Trump’s meltdown on Wednesday over what he called the “Jeffrey Epstein hoax” had quite an impact on social media.

The president took to his Truth Social platform and posted a lengthy diatribe in which he referred to speculation about the convicted sex offender’s clients as “bullshit” that his own “PAST supporters have bought into ... hook, line, and sinker.”

He also said Epstein truthers were “weaklings” who are doing the Democrats’ work and insisted, “I don’t want their support anymore!”

Trump’s post came a day after he claimed the so-called Epstein files were fabricated by former FBI Director James Comey and former Presidents Barack Obama and Joe Biden.

The financier had associated with various politicians, including both Trump and Bill Clinton, and was facing sex trafficking charges before his 2019 death in a New York jail cell. But Trump’s DOJ and FBI heads recently stated that no “Epstein client list” exists, generating even more speculation from the public.

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US House speaker Mike Johnson has waded into the Epstein files saga that is roiling Donald Trump’s conservative base – by calling on the justice department to release the Epstein files.

Johnson, a key ally of the US president, was asked about the controversy during an interview for a rightwing podcast. “It’s a very delicate subject, but we should put everything out there and let the people decide it,” Johnson told Benny Johnson, in comments released on Tuesday. “I agree with the sentiment that we need to put it out there.”

Referring to a comment attorney general Pam Bondi made to Fox News this year that Epstein’s client list was “sitting on my desk right now to review”, Johnson said: “She needs to come forward and explain that to everybody.

“We need the DoJ focusing on the major priorities. So let’s get this thing resolved,” the speaker added.

The comments put Johnson at odds with Trump, who has defended Bondi’s handling of the case.

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US president Donald Trump has claimed that the Club World Cup trophy that has featured prominently in the Oval Office will stay there, and that Fifa made a copy of the trophy that was awarded to Chelsea after their win in the tournament’s final on Sunday.

Trump attended the final along with numerous members of his cabinet and Fifa president Gianni Infantino. The pair of presidents jointly presented the trophy to Chelsea captain Reece James, with Trump staying front-and-center despite the apparent confusion of Chelsea players and the pleading of Infantino.

The incident is just the latest in a long series of intersections between the US president and the world of Fifa, which began in earnest this year soon after Trump started his second term in office. Infantino unveiled the Club World Cup trophy for the first time in an event at the Oval Office in March, and the trophy has stayed there for all subsequent events in the historic space since.

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