KWAME HOLMAN: One person died and at least 73 people were injured in Louisiana today when a chemical plant exploded and caught fire. Amateur video showed a thick plume of smoke rising from the facility 20 miles southeast of Baton Rouge. The plant produces highly flammable gases, ethylene and propylene. There was no immediate word on what sparked the explosion.

Revelations of extensive surveillance by the National Security Agency already are doing damage. The director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation made that claim today, backed up by some in Congress.