The US Senate hearings begin today for the nominees for President Donald Trump’s new administration, a process that will take several weeks and is expected to be difficult for some of them, such as Pete Hegseth who has been selected for the Defense Department.

The U.S. Constitution provides that the nomination of secretaries of state and other high-ranking officials must be approved by the Senate after a hearing by a committee of the body.

The 44-year-old Hegseth, a former military officer, opens the hearing ball today and is expected to be targeted by Democratic senators on the Armed Services Committee.

Democrats are strongly opposed to Trump’s desire to appoint this veteran and former Fox News host to the Defense Department, pointing mainly to his “lack of experience” and some of his statements, such as his opposition to women’s participation in combat troops.

In November, moreover, an allegation made in 2017 against Hegseth in California of sexual assault came to light. However, no charges were filed against him for the incident and the former officer denies having any non-consensual relationship.

Hegseth also allegedly had problems with alcohol and also mismanaged funds intended for US military veterans.

Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer questioned yesterday: “Is someone with Pete Hegseth’s alleged past really the kind of person we want in charge of a very, very important and dangerous situation?”

Hegseth has said he wants to move forward with a fundamental reorganization of the Pentagon, which he believes has become too woke and is mainly seeking to remove some generals and ban bisexuals from joining the armed forces.

Despite the backlash over Trump’s intention to nominate him as defense secretary, the newly elected U.S. president stressed in early December that he is sticking with his choice.

Trump, however, was forced to back down on his nomination of Matt Getz to the Justice Department in the face of opposition from many senators and even Republicans.

Although in his first term in office Trump chose mostly men and women with experience in key positions, this time he chose to nominate loyal supporters.

After Hegseth, Christie Noem, whom Trump wants to appoint to the Department of Homeland Security, is expected to testify before the Senate tomorrow morning. She will be followed by Pam Brody, a nominee for the Justice Department, and Marco Rubio, a nominee for the State Department.

The last time the Senate rejected a nomination of a person proposed by the US president was in 1989. Then George W. Bush was forced to back down and not appoint John Tower as Secretary of Defense because of allegations of his drinking problems and his inappropriate behavior toward women.