The White House says U.S. President George Bush's comment about "false comfort of appeasement" is not directed at Democratic Party presidential hopeful Barack Obama.
Spokeswoman Dana Perino says the president is not going to stop talking about the ideals and values of the United States because there is an upcoming presidential election.
She told reporters in Jerusalem Thursday that she understands that when candidates are running for office, they sometimes think the world revolves around them. She said that is not always true and it is not true in this case.
Addressing the Israeli parliament Thursday, President Bush said there are some who seem to believe the United States should negotiate with terrorists.
Mr. Bush said that approach must be called what it is - the false comfort of appeasement - which he said has been repeatedly discredited by history.
In a statement after the speech, Obama accused the president of launching what he called a "false political attack" against him, saying Mr. Bush knows that he has never supported engagement with terrorists.
Obama has said if elected president he would be willing to meet with leaders of Iran as well as other countries at odds with the United States, such as Syria, North Korea, Venezuela and Cuba. He has said refusing to meet with those leaders does not help solve diplomatic problems.
