Patriot Act toned down

Nearly 14 years after the 9/11 attacks, this country's mood may have finally shifted from the pervasive fear that birthed the Patriot Act, which blithely ignored privacy laws to root out terrorist plots.

That mood swing is reflected in Congress' expected approval of a Patriot Act replacement, the Freedom Act, which would stop the government's bulk collection of private telephone information. Instead, the National Security Agency and FBI would have to request that data from telecommunication companies that must retain such records.

The Freedom Act came out of the House as a compromise between Patriot Act supporters and opponents who want the law scuttled. Among its foes is Sen. Rand Paul (R., Ky.), who used Senate rules to prevent a vote on the measure over the weekend.

Paul said he was still concerned that "we might be exchanging bulk collection by the government [with] bulk collection by phone companies." But that shift represents progress that likely would not have been possible two years ago.

That was before former NSA contractor Edward Snowden leaked details about the government's data collection practices in 2013 and fled to Russia. If the Freedom Act passes as expected, it will add to the mixed feelings many Americans have about Snowden. Is he a villain, or a hero?

That's for history to decide. Congress' job is to be mindful of the government's responsibility to protect the public even as it pays heed to the public's constitutionally protected rights to privacy. No easy task under any circumstances, it is even more difficult in an arena so woefully beset by politics.