On a visit to Washington, Haitian President-elect Rene; Preval spoke with President Bush and pushed trade concessions for his country.

BY LESLEY CLARK AND PABLO BACHELET

WASHINGTON - Haitian President-elect Rene Preval, on a U.S. visit to rustle up more economic aid for his poor nation, met briefly with President Bush on Tuesday and expressed confidence that a crucial trade agreement would pass Congress soon.

Bush dropped by when Préval was meeting with National Security Advisor Stephen Hadley, said National Security Council spokesman Frederick Jones. The White House provided no further details on the meeting.

Préval also made the rounds of Congress to lobby for HOPE, a bill that provides concessions to Haiti's textile exports to the United States.

Préval told The Miami Herald that it was the third time he had talked with Bush about the legislation.

''I believe that everybody understands that, with Haiti's situation in terms of poverty, we must create jobs,'' he said through an interpreter. ``Democracy works with the economy.''

Haitian officials say the bill, opposed by some U.S. textile interests, could generate 40,000 jobs in a country where nearly two out of three citizens live below the poverty line. So far, the Bush administration, largely sympathetic to Haiti's plight, has not taken a stand on the initiative.

After meeting with members of the powerful House Ways and Means Committee, which oversees trade issues, Préval said lawmakers understood the urgency of HOPE and that he was confident the bill would pass soon.

U.S. Rep. Clay Shaw, a Fort Lauderdale Republican on the committee, said Préval wanted to extend the bill's benefits to 10 years, up from the three provided in the bill. ''We'll go back and take a look at it and see what we can do on it,'' Shaw said.

Republican Rep. Mark Foley of Florida, who invited Préval to the event, said the administration is eager to work with the new Préval administration. ''I think our administration wants to do what it can, within the confines of political reality,'' he said.

Préval won Feb. 7 elections by a big margin after multiple postponements of the voting. The Bush administration pushed the elections as a key step in the reconstruction of a nation wracked by violence and economic decay since the 2004 ouster of former President Jean-Bertrand Aristide. Bush called Préval on Feb. 23 to congratulate him on his victory.

Préval was accompanied by a delegation of Haitian businessmen that included Dumarsais Simeus, a wealthy Texas businessman who was barred from running in the Feb. 7 elections because he isn't a Haitian citizen. The group is also scheduled to visit the International Monetary Fund and the Inter-American Development Bank.

Préval is scheduled to address the Organization of American States today. The OAS helped organize the Feb. 7 elections.

Préval is to assume the presidency on May 14.