CAIRO, Egypt (AP) -- Egypt criticized the U.S. after four Congress members met with a lawmaker from the banned Muslim Brotherhood, less than two months after House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer met the same politician.

The bipartisan delegation headed by Rep. David Price met with Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak early Sunday before heading to parliament to talk to a group of lawmakers that included the Brotherhood's Mohammed Saad el-Katatni. "The United States says that it doesn't establish relations with a banned group, whether in Egypt or outside Egypt," said Mubarak's spokesman Suleiman Awaad. "The U.S. says it is meeting with the Brotherhood as Parliament members, but doesn't make the same distinction and refuses to talk with Hamas, who is heading the Palestinian government and is occupying the prime minister's seat."

Hamas swept the 2006 legislative elections in the Palestinian territories, but the U.S. has refused to meet directly with the group .

Hamas is loosely affiliated with the Muslim Brotherhood, and some of the militant group's founding members were part of the organization in Egypt and Jordan. Hamas continues to advocate violence as part of its resistance against Israeli occupation.

El-Katatni said the talks focused on current challenges across the Middle East, not on Egypt. "We met with the delegation for more than an hour and we discussed the American policy in the Middle East: Palestine, Iraq and Iran's nuclear issue," he said. "The talks didn't address internal Egyptian issues or political reform."

Price's spokesman, Paul Cox, said the congressman was unavailable for comment. The U.S. Embassy in Cairo also declined to comment.

The delegation also included Reps. Jeff Fortenberry, Nick Rahall and Gwen Moore. The group is on a Middle East tour that will take them to Lebanon, Israel and the Palestinian territories, Price told reporters.

Hoyer, a Democrat from Maryland, met with el-Katatni twice — once at Egypt's parliament and then at the home of the U.S. ambassador to Egypt.

Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice has refused to meet with the Brotherhood.

Although officially banned since 1954, the Brotherhood has been tolerated by the government in recent years as it has shifted its focus to politics and social welfare. The Brotherhood advocates implementation of Islamic law but says it wants democratic reforms in Egypt, where Mubarak, 79, has had a quarter-century of authoritarian rule.

In 2005, Brotherhood members running as independents won enough seats in elections to become the largest opposition bloc in parliament.

But as the Brotherhood's popularity has increased, so have government crackdowns against it.

The government accuses the group of seeking to take over the country, and in March, passed a series of constitutional amendments that further curtailed its ability to participate in politics.

More than 400 Brotherhood members, including leading figures, students and bloggers, have been arrested since December. That prompted government accusations that the movement was forming an armed wing, providing students with combat training, knives and chains. The group denies forming a militia.