The government hangs up on collecting phone metadata for millions of Americans. John Kerry breaks a leg cycling in Europe. And a Muslim chaplain said she was accused of potentially using a can of soda as a weapon on a plane.
It’s Monday, and here are the five things to know for your new day:
Bulk data collection halts
It’s over … for now: Whether you call it security or spying, the National Security Agency’s bulk data collection program ended at midnight. The government had used the Patriot Act as the legal basis for gathering millions of Americans’ phone metadata, but the Senate failed to reach a deal to keep provisions of the Patriot Act from expiring before the midnight deadline on Sunday.
But the Senate is expected to move on final passage of a compromise bill called the USA Freedom Act sometime this week. That bill would have telephone companies hold Americans’ phone metadata and require the government to get a specific warrant to seize any of that information.
Beau Biden dies
Another tragedy for the Bidens: He had the same name as his famous dad, but Joseph Biden III had quite a political career himself. Biden, better known by his nickname Beau, died Saturday at age 46 after battling brain cancer. The vice president’s son was an Iraq War veteran who later served as Delaware’s attorney general. As a child, Beau Biden lost his mother and sister in a car accident.
John Kerry breaks a leg
Out of commission: U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry broke his right femur in a biking accident in Scionzier, France, on Sunday morning. That means he won’t be able to attend a counter-ISIS coalition meeting Tuesday in Paris, but he’ll participate in the Paris meeting remotely, a State Department spokesman said.
Taliban 5 stay put
Not going anywhere: Qatar has agreed to temporarily extend a travel ban for the five senior Taliban leaders who have lived there since last year, when they were released in a prisoner swap for American Army Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl. The ban will stay in place while discussions regarding a long-term solution continue between the United States, Qatar and Afghanistan. Bergdahl, meanwhile, has been charged with desertion and could face a life sentence.
Muslim chaplain claims discrimination in the sky
Diet Coke as a weapon? A request for an unopened can of Diet Coke on a United Airlines flight left Muslim chaplain Tahera Ahmad in tears. She said she asked for an unopened can for hygienic reasons, and the flight attendant told her that she could not give her one — even though she handed an unopened can of beer to a man seated nearby. Ahmad recalls questioning the flight attending, then getting this response: “We are unauthorized to give unopened cans to people because they may use it as a weapon on the plane.” The incident led to widespread support of Ahmad on social media.
