Pass “honest leadership and open government” ethics legislation

House Democrats early on made changes in some operating rules, but could not unite around some of the tougher provisions liberal government reform groups wanted, such as a two-year ban on lawmakers and staffers taking “revolving-door” jobs in firms related to their legislative work. A diluted bill will head to a conference committee that will attempt to merge it with a more favorable Senate bill.

Increase the minimum wage

Passed by the House and by the Senate, but with about $5 billion in tax breaks for business demanded by Sen. Max Baucus, D-Mont., and Senate Republicans. It is being attached to the Iraq war funding bill. The assumption is that with limits on his war authority stripped from the Iraq supplemental and with Republicans mollified by the tax concessions, the minimum wage will be signed into law.

Implement the 9/11 Commission recommendations 

The House passed H.R. 1 as its first order of business, and a similar bill (S. 4) has passed the Senate, but the effort to get a combined bill to the president’s desk has languished as attention has shifted to the Iraq funding debate. Action is now expected sometime after the Memorial Day recess. The bill also faces a veto threat from President Bush.

Cut interest on student loans

The Senate has yet to take up a bill passed by the House that would cut loan rates in half, but Sen. Edward Kennedy, D-Mass., has scheduled health and education committee action on the bill for June 6.

Require the federal government to negotiate for lower prescription drug prices for Medicare patients

A softened version of the Medicare drug-negotiations bill that passed the House died in the Senate, after Republicans refused to let it come up for debate under heavy pressure from the pharmaceutical lobby and the White House. House Democrats are now threatening to attach the bill to must-pass government funding bills.