More than a dozen of President-elect Donald Trump’s Cabinet nominees will face confirmation hearings in the Senate next week. The back-to-back Senate hearings are likely to prove the first major test of Trump’s second term in office, as some of the president-elect’s selections have stoked controversy on both sides of the aisle in recent months. The Republican Party currently maintains a slim majority in the Senate of 53 to 45 Democrats and two independents who caucus with Democrats. As such, the ability of the Republican majority to push through Trump’s nominees will provide a key read of just how far his influence on the party extends….