Midday Roundup: NSA's ticket to snoop expires after Senate stalemate

Data dump. The National Security Agency’s bulk collection of Americans’ phone data halted at midnight last night, at least temporarily, when the Senate failed to pass legislation extending parts of the Patriot Act. Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., made good on a promise to prevent an accelerated vote on the USA Freedom Act. The bill would transfer the data collection operation from the NSA to phone companies. Paul, who is running for president, said that’s a distinction without a difference. He plans to offer several amendments to the bill to further safeguard American liberties. “I’m completely convinced that we can obey the constitution, use the Fourth Amendment as intended, spirit and letter of the law, and catch terrorists,” Paul said. Former CIA and NSA Director Michael Hayden told Fox News Sunday that bulk collection of phone data is a key tool in fighting terrorism. The Senate will take up the bill again this week. The House has already passed it by a wide margin.

A father’s loss. Sympathies are pouring in today for Vice President Joe Biden, whose 46-year old son Beau died of brain cancer over the weekend. In 2012, Beau Biden submitted his father’s name in nomination for vice president at the Democratic National Convention. “In moments both public and private, he’s the father I’ve always known, the grandfather my children love and adore, and the vice president our nation needs,” he said then. Beau Biden served in the Delaware National Guard and did a tour of duty in Iraq. He was also Delaware’s attorney general and was planning a run for governor in 2016. Biden’s first wife and infant daughter were killed in an automobile accident in 1972.

Kerry’s crash. Secretary of State John Kerry broke his leg Sunday while cycling southeast of Geneva. He initially received treatment for a fractured femur at a hospital in Geneva. He plans to return to the United States in the near future on a military transport plane with an orthopedic surgeon on board. Kerry, 71, will continue his medical care at Massachusetts General Hospital, spokesman John Kirby said. The injury is not life-threatening, but it could sideline the secretary of state during his recovery and hamper the nuclear negotiations with Iran, in which Kerry has played an integral role.

Taking offense. The Washington Metropolitan Transit Authority’s board of directors voted last week to suspend issue-oriented ads until the end of the year. Board members didn’t say why, but Pamela Gellar, whose group sponsored the anti-Islam cartoon contest in Texas, said she submitted an ad featuring the winning cartoon to Metro about two weeks ago. She said it depicted Muhammad raising a sword and saying, “You can’t draw me,” over a caption that read, “Support free speech.” Two would-be terrorists ambushed officers outside the Texas event and were killed.

At the movies. San Andreas rocked theaters in its debut this weekend. The action thriller depicting a catastrophic earthquake felt across the country was the weekend box-office winner, bringing in more than $53 million dollars. Pitch Perfect 2 came in second, with just under $15 million for the weekend, followed closely by Tomorrowland at nearly $14 million. Mad Max: Fury Road and Avengers: Age of Ultron followed close behind, rounding out a big weekend for action-adventure flicks.

WORLD Radio’s Jim Henry and Steve Coleman contributed to this report.