The Senate is kicking off confirmation hearings for President-elect Trump’s cabinet nominees this week, with a slew of his picks — some controversial, others with strong support — set to appear before committees and field questions on their backgrounds and visions for the administration.

Headlining the list of nominees this week is Pete Hegseth, Trump’s selection to serve as defense secretary, who has drawn skepticism among some for allegations of sexual assault and excessive drinking on the job and past comments that women should not serve in combat roles. Hegseth will appear before the Senate Armed Services Committee on Tuesday.

In addition to Hegseth, Trump’s nominees for nearly a dozen other Cabinet positions will answer questions this week, as Congress prepares for the president-elect to take office in exactly one week.

Also this week, the Senate is expected to hold additional votes on the Laken Riley Act, the bill named after the slain Georgia student that would require detention of migrants arrested for theft. The measure cleared a key procedural hurdle last week in an overwhelmingly bipartisan vote.

On the House side, lawmakers will consider legislation pertaining to transgender athletes and immigration. And the House Ways and Means Committee is scheduled to hold a hearing on making the 2017 Trump tax cuts permanent.

Senate to hold confirmation hearings for Trump nominees

Hegseth’s nomination to be secretary of Defense will face a key moment on Tuesday, when the former Fox News host fields questions from members of the Senate Armed Services Committee.

The hearing — scheduled for Tuesday at 9:30 a.m. — comes days after the top senators on the Armed Services panel were briefed on the FBI’s background check into Hegseth, according to multiple outlets, a significant development since a number of lawmakers were demanding to review the contents as the nomination process progressed.

And the hearing follows multiple weeks of news coverage focused on the controversies surrounding Hegseth, including allegations of sexual assault and excessive drinking on the job and previous comments he has made that women should not serve in combat roles in the military.

Those concerns are likely to come up on Tuesday, when the 14 Republicans and 13 Democrats on the panel have their chance to question the nominee.

One lawmaker to keep an eye on will be Sen. Joni Ernst (R-Iowa), who has not committed to backing the defense secretary nominee. Ernst is seen as a key vote on the committee, in-part because she is a veteran and survivor of sexual assault.

Ernst met with Hegseth twice in December, calling the second gathering “productive.”

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