The Kentucky Republican had repeatedly insisted on continuing the bulk collection of Americans' phone data. That put him at odds with the Obama administration and the Republican-run House, which overwhelmingly endorsed significant limits.
Senators say McConnell overestimated his ability to force a deadline-driven extension of the law. And he seemed to misjudge the bipartisan support for the House-crafted changes.
Most puzzling to some were his actions that allowed first-term Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky to use the Senate's elaborate rules to delay things long enough to cause the entire USA Patriot Act to lapse for a couple of days.
