WASHINGTON – President Bush, on the heels of his meeting with King Abdullah of Jordan, said at a press conference yesterday that he hoped Hezbollah would lay down its arms and end its threats to Israeli-Palestinian peace.

“We view Hezbollah as a terrorist organization, and I would hope that Hezbollah would prove that they’re not by laying down arms and not threatening peace,” Mr. Bush said to the press, shortly after his session with the Hashemite monarch.

Mr. Bush’s remarks earned him the rebuke of Senator Schumer, a Democrat of New York, who said in a statement that the president’s words came close to forgiving the terrorist group once labeled by a former deputy secretary of state, Richard Armitage, as the “A-team of terrorists.”

“Hezbollah has the blood of Americans on its hands and it is awfully difficult to forgive them so quickly, especially when they have not denounced terrorism,” Mr. Schumer said.

American officials insist that their position on Hezbollah has not changed since the group last week mustered at least 100,000 supporters to rally in favor of Syrian occupation in Beirut. Nonetheless, recent statements from senior Bush administration officials suggest that America would accept Hezbollah in a political capacity if the group did not use terror or violence of any kind during Lebanon’s May elections. Hezbollah already has members in the country’s parliament.

“Hezbollah is a terrorist organization,” White House spokesman Scott McClellan said yesterday. “Our view has not changed when it comes to that. And 1559 also calls for all militias to be disarmed. And we want to see 1559 fully complied with.”

The American perspective on Hezbollah is important in light of recent developments in Europe. Diplomatic sources tell the Sun that France in particular has asked America to accept the possibility that Hezbollah could have an influential role in a government that replaces the pro-occupation regime in Beirut. France was a partner in drafting the U.N. Security Council resolution 1559, which calls on Syria to withdraw from Lebanon. The European Union is scheduled to meet tomorrow to decide whether to ban fund-raising for Hezbollah in their member countries.

Asked for a response to Mr. Schumer’s statement, one White House official asked, “What is he supposed to say? Stay armed and stay terrorist?”

A spokesman for Mr. Schumer countered that his boss’s concerns should be taken seriously. “They can disarm and stop terrorizing, but it does not mean they should have an automatic seat at the table.

There is a difference between wanting free and fair elections in the Middle East, and giving one of the top terrorist organizations in the world a chance to form a new government in Lebanon,” Israel Klein told the Sun.

In his remarks yesterday, President Bush said that he and King Abdullah discussed the threat posed by Hezbollah against the Israeli-Palestinian peace negotiations. “One of our concerns the Majesty and I discussed is that Hezbollah may try to derail the peace process between Israel and the Palestinians,” Mr. Bush said.

In December, the Sun reported that Israeli intelligence currently believes that at least 70% of terror attacks against its civilians are directed by Hezbollah. On November 30, Israel’s ambassador in Washington told reporters, “There is an increased effort by Iran, mostly through their arm in the region Hezbollah, and the Revolutionary Guards in Lebanon to continue to increase the capability of Palestinian terrorist organizations.”

Earlier this month, the White House commissioned intelligence agencies to provide a new report on Iran’s influence in Lebanon, according to two administration officials. The Islamic republic, which last week rebuffed American incentives in order for it to live up to prior commitments it has made on its nuclear program, has provided Hezbollah for years with arms and training. Pictures of Iranian leaders are often displayed prominently at Hezbollah rallies.

Mr. McClellan yesterday called on Iran again to end its support for terrorism. “They continue to move in a direction that is out of step with the rest of the Middle East,” he said. “They need to change their behavior and stop supporting terrorism. They need to go after terrorist organizations that are in their country and deal with them.”