The Democratic Party’s presidential nominee Senator Barack Obama stated that Hamas’ and Hezbollah’s violent methods were undermining their “legitimate claims” in an interview with David Brooks of the New York Times in May.

“…they’re [Hamas and Hezbollah] going down a blind alley with violence that weakens their legitimate claims,” Obama said. He also stated that U.S. foreign policy needed to address “the root causes of problems and dangers.”

He said that the U.S. needed to work with the government of Lebanon to provide social services to its people in order to undermine support for Hezbollah, and criticized Iran and Syria for supporting the terrorist organizations. He also praised the foreign policy of the first Bush Administration, and reaffirmed his pledge to negotiate directly with the leader of Iran.

“There are rarely purely ideological movements out there. We can encourage actors to think in practical and not ideological terms. We can strengthen those elements that are making practical calculations,” Obama said when discussing why he’d meet with the leaders of Iran and other rogue states.

The Republican presidential nominee, Senator John McCain, has attacked Obama for his willingness to sit at the table with such leaders, arguing that it emboldens them.