Washington - US President George W Bush will be travelling to Africa as planned, a day after he threatened to delay the trip because of a standoff with Congress over a terrorism surveillance law, a White House official said Friday. Bush was expected to depart on Friday, an official at the Nationsl Security Council said.
On Thursday, Bush said he may delay the trip to increase pressure on the US House of Representatives to give the final stamp of approval on a law that would increase White House authority to carry out secret wiretaps on foreign communications and give legal immunity for phone companies that have carried out wiretapping without warrants.
The House Democrats, who hold the majority, defiantly closed Congress for a week's recess and allowed a temporary measure to lapse on Saturday.
Bush on Friday charged that blocking the legislation meant "our country is more in danger of an attack."
The sticking issue is the immunity provision, which Bush says is necessary to get telephone companies to "work collaboratively with us to protect the American people" without fear of being sued.
House Democratic leader Nancy Pelosi said the House would not be bullied into passing a law.
"The president knows full well that he has all the authority he needs to protect the American people," Pelosi said. "President Bush tells the American people that he has nothing to offer but fear, and I'm afraid that his fear-mongering of this bill is not constructive."
