Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (R-N.Y.) has accused Republicans of attempting to fast-track the confirmation of President-elect Donald Trump’s Cabinet nominees, saying that such actions undermine Senate norms and transparency. Schumer’s remarks, delivered on the Senate floor on Jan. 8, come as the Senate prepares to begin confirmation hearings for Trump’s nominees next week. The president-elect has been pushing for swift confirmations to ensure his administration is ready to act immediately after his Jan. 20 inauguration as the 47th president. In his speech, Schumer emphasized the importance of adhering to established Senate practices, including minority consent, to ensure thorough vetting of nominees. Minority consent is the practice of ensuring that the minority party—in this case, Democrats—has an opportunity to review and approve the scheduling of hearings, providing a check on the majority party’s ability to dictate the pace of the confirmation process….