The Senate will begin a blizzard of confirmation hearings Tuesday for Donald Trump Donald John TrumpBarr criticizes DOJ in speech declaring all agency power 'is invested in the attorney general' Military leaders asked about using heat ray on protesters outside White House: report Powell warns failure to reach COVID-19 deal could 'scar and damage' economy MORE’s prospective Cabinet as Republicans race to get members of the president-elect’s team in place on day one of his administration.

The fast-tracking of nominees is frustrating Democrats, who want to use the hearings to press Trump’s team on a host of issues.

It has also drawn criticism from the federal Government Ethics Office, which in a letter to Democrats on Saturday argued that the confirmation process has become so rushed, it is difficult to do ethics probes.

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Democrats argue the picks deserve extra scrutiny because of the massive wealth of several nominees. Trump’s Cabinet in total is worth more than a third of American households.

Sen. Dick Durbin Richard (Dick) Joseph DurbinSenate Republicans signal openness to working with Biden Top GOP senator calls for Biden to release list of possible Supreme Court picks GOP ramps up attacks on Democrats over talk of nixing filibuster MORE (Ill.), the Senate’s No. 2 Democrat, argued Trump is creating a “room full of billionaires” for his Cabinet.

Democrats are focusing their attacks on eight nominees, three of whom come to Capitol Hill this week: Betsy DeVos, Trump’s nominee for Education secretary; Sen. Jeff Sessions Jefferson (Jeff) Beauregard SessionsTrump's policies on refugees are as simple as ABCs Ocasio-Cortez, Velázquez call for convention to decide Puerto Rico status White House officials voted by show of hands on 2018 family separations: report MORE (R-Ala.), who has been nominated to be attorney general; and Rex Tillerson, Trump’s choice to be secretary of State.

“Our caucus ... thinks it’s absolutely essential that the U.S. Senate has a chance to appropriately vet the nominees, and the American people deserve to hear their views and qualifications in public hearings,” Senate Democratic Leader Charles Schumer Chuck SchumerDemocrats scramble on COVID-19 relief amid division, Trump surprise Pelosi, Schumer 'encouraged' by Trump call for bigger coronavirus relief package Schumer, Sanders call for Senate panel to address election security MORE (N.Y.) said last week.

Retired Marine Gen. James Mattis, Trump’s pick to lead the Pentagon; John Kelly, Trump’s pick to lead the Department of Homeland Security; Elaine Chao, his nominee to be Transportation secretary; Ben Carson, his pick for Housing and Urban Development; Wilbur Ross, his pick to Commerce secretary; and Rep. Mike Pompeo (R-Kan.), his pick to lead the CIA, are also all scheduled to get confirmation hearings this week.

Blocking any of these nominees is unlikely, since the GOP needs just 50 votes to win a confirmation battle. Democrats changed the filibuster rules for nominations when they controlled the Senate, easing the process.

Instead, Democrats will hope to weaken various nominees politically, with an eye toward slowing Trump’s agenda.

Sen. Ben Cardin Benjamin (Ben) Louis CardinPPP application window closes after coronavirus talks deadlock Congress eyes tighter restrictions on next round of small business help Senate passes extension of application deadline for PPP small-business loans MORE (D-Md.), who met with Tillerson this week, predicted Democrats will dig in on the former Exxon Mobile CEO’s relationship with Russian President Vladimir Putin, as well as his position on climate change.

“I think you’re going to find that there are going to be areas of concern that members on the Democratic side are going to want to highlight,” he said. “His relationships in Russia and some of the things he did at Exxon Mobile.”

The Senate Foreign Relations Committee is scheduled to start Tillerson’s hearing on Wednesday, with another day of questions possible for Thursday.

Sessions’s hearing will start on Tuesday, while DeVos is also scheduled for Wednesday.

Democrats are also bemoaning what they argue is a schedule “crunch” for nominees.

“It shouldn’t be the case that six hearings ... occur all on the same day, and on the same day as a potential vote-a-rama, that is mostly unprecedented in the modern era of Cabinet considerations, happening only once in history,” Schumer said. “It is not the standard.”

Senators are tentatively expected to start what’s known as a vote-a-rama on Wednesday as they work to pass ObamaCare repeal guidelines as part of a budgetary bill. Lawmakers can use the fast-paced marathon session to force a vote on dozens of amendments, potentially trapping senators on the floor for hours.

Republicans are dismissing the Democratic complaints about the schedule.

They note that a Democratic-controlled Senate confirmed seven of President Obama’s nominees on the first day of his administration in 2009.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell Addison (Mitch) Mitchell McConnellSenate Republicans signal openness to working with Biden Hillicon Valley: DOJ indicts Chinese, Malaysian hackers accused of targeting over 100 organizations | GOP senators raise concerns over Oracle-TikTok deal | QAnon awareness jumps in new poll The Hill's Campaign Report: Biden asks if public can trust vaccine from Trump ahead of Election Day | Oklahoma health officials raised red flags before Trump rally MORE (R-Ky.) told reporters that he hopes the Senate can clear Trump’s national security team on the first day of his administration.

“I think it would be great if the Democrats would understand that particularly with regard to the national security team, the secretary of Defense, CIA, Homeland Security, it would make a lot of sense to have those folks in place on day one,” he said.

Asked about the Democrats’ objections to the schedule, Sen. Orrin Hatch Orrin Grant HatchBottom line Bottom line Senate GOP divided over whether they'd fill Supreme Court vacancy MORE (R-Utah), the chairman of the Finance Committee, called it “two-bit politics.”

“Oh, give me a break,” he said. “That happens all the time.”

Sen. Bob Corker Robert (Bob) Phillips CorkerHas Congress captured Russia policy? Tennessee primary battle turns nasty for Republicans Cheney clashes with Trump MORE (R-Tenn.) said Democratic pressure on Trump nominees to turn over their tax returns is linked to frustration over Trump’s election. Trump refused to make his tax returns public in the campaign, breaking decades of precedent for presidential candidates.

“This tax return business is about the presidential election, because the president-elect did not put forth his tax returns,” Corker said. “Some will make an issue out of that during the committee hearing, and that's fine.”

But the letter from the ethics office is likely to be used by Democrats to bolster their arguments — and their attacks.

“I am not aware of any occasion in the four decades since OGE was established when the Senate held a confirmation hearing before the nominee had completed the ethics review process,” Walter Shaub, Jr., the ethics office director, wrote in the letter.