The next vote on FISA might be a short term extension of the PAA, according to today's The Hill. Reid is considering the short-term extension to allow a delay of consideration of the bill just tabled (S. 2248) until after the early presidential primaries.
Reid said Senate Democrats might have a better chance of resolving internal disputes and moving a rewrite of the 1978 Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) once the early primaries have concluded....
Under Reid’s plan, the Senate would have enough breathing room to pass a compromise bill and reconcile any differences with the House, which has already passed a Democratic measure that would re-establish court oversight over the National Security Agency’s warrantless spying program. The Senate Intelligence Committee passed a bipartisan measure that includes retroactive immunity for telecommunications firms, while the Judiciary panel passed a separate bill that is silent on immunity.
Honestly, it would be better to let the horrible PAA die, but that's a difficult political proposition for "some" Democrats, as pointed out by Russ Feingold:
Without extending the time for debate, some Democrats fear that the White House will warn that failure to enact the bill could increase the chances of a terrorist attack and pressure Democrats to pass a bill they oppose — the same scenario as last August.
"People are firm for the moment ... but then the intimidation starts," said Sen. Russ Feingold (D-Wis.), a staunch critic of the telecom immunity provision. "Too often Democrats allow themselves to be intimidated by phony arguments."
One consideration for Reid in this is perhaps he's not going to face a determined Chris Dodd, supposing that Dodd led this effort to try to boost his presidential campaign. Dodd, however, is determined to keep up his opposition, regardless of the fate of his presidential bid, according to the article. I don't doubt that, and I don't doubt that the Senators who stood with him on the floor Monday--as well as Biden, Clinton, and Obama who promised support--will be there again in February. But it wouldn't hurt for us to periodically remind them over the next several weeks of how critical their effort is.