Central America Lobbies Congress on Trade
The presidents of the five Central American countries and the Dominican Republic walked the halls of the United States Congress on Wednesday, lobbyists in support of a free trade agreement with the United States.

Historians believe it is the first time six heads of state were in the Capitol together to try to persuade legislators to vote their way on specific legislation.

The Central American Free Trade Agreement (FACTA) is opposed by U.S. labor unions, sugar farmers and other groups that are upset with the loss of more than 3 million U.S. manufacturing jobs over the past five years and the string of record trade deficits.

The presidents of Costa Rica, Nicargua, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras and the Dominion Republic met with Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist, Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Richard Lugar and other senators.

The presidents ignored questions as they walked past photographers on their way into the meeting.

Afterward, they spoke confidently of the proposed agreement's prospects.

"There is support for free trade in Congress," said Dominican President Leonel Fernandez, speaking for his colleagues. He conceded that some lawmakers have misgivings involving labor rights and environmental policies in the Latin countries. However, he said, "At the end, we feel optimistic that CAFTA will pass Capitol Hill."

The presidents were supposed to have met with House Speaker Dennis Hastert. That session was scrubbed because of the evacuation of the Capitol after a small plane entered restricted airspace over Washington.

Aides said the presidents were being driven to the Capitol when the alert was declared just after noon and the building was ordered cleared. However, at least one of the presidents apparently had already entered the Capitol. Three security agents were seen hustling a man out of the building into a limousine, which sped away, flags flying on the front fenders.

Earlier, Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld played host to the leaders.

Their joint visit will end with a meeting with President Bush at the White House on Thursday. The Bush administration hopes the president's show of support for the pact will help its chance of congressional passage.

President Enrique Bolaños of Nicaragua was asked whether he felt the administration inordinately delayed seeking congressional approval of CAFTA.

"I'm not concerned that the U.S. administration sent CAFTA to Congress a year after it was negotiated. The free trade agreement with Chile took 10 years to mature and negotiate," Bolaños said. "What surprises me is that CAFTA needed only one year to be on the Capitol Hill agenda."

At a reception honoring the presidents at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, U.S. Trade Representative Rob Portman said Tuesday night that the administration sees the agreement as a way to help "solidify democracy in a critical region of our hemisphere."

Addressing members of Congress on behalf of the visiting presidents, Bolaños said, "I know you are going to vote for CAFTA because you care for your nation and also your neighbors."

Before the presidents arrived in Washington, the administration had them traveling across the country, talking to governors, participating in rallies and meeting with newspaper editorial boards.

The congressional battle is shaping up as the most ferocious free-trade confrontation since the North American Free Trade Agreement. That agreement, which links the United States, Canada and Mexico, was the subject of a bitter fight more than a decade ago under President Clinton.

The United States has 12 free-trade agreements, including NAFTA.