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Clinton pushed aside a microphone and spoke candidly with the local clergy.

Asking for solutions to the nation's most compelling — and unresolved — needs, he said he wanted to tackle as many of these problems as possible in the remaining 10 months of his presidency.

Noshing on mints and sipping spring water at the Westin St. Francis Hotel, Clinton told the group that when he leaves office, he plans to devote himself to securing peace in regions where it has remained elusive — including the Middle East.

The meeting, which was arranged by San Francisco Supervisor Amos Brown, a longtime Clinton friend, was not publicized.

It was Brown who invited two of San Francisco's most prominent rabbis, Rabbi Martin Weiner of Reform Congregation Sherith Israel and Rabbi Stephen Pearce of Reform Congregation Emanu-El, as well as Rita Semel, former JCRC director who now is the mayor's director of homelessness and also chairs the San Francisco Interfaith Council

"It was quite interesting to spend more than an hour with the president in a rather informal and rather inspiring setting," said Weiner. "In my mind, he has a very deep commitment to some of the most profound ethical issues of our time."

Weiner added, "He is quite a charismatic man."

Scheduled for 1:30 p.m., the meeting was delayed by more than an hour as Clinton's helicopter touched down behind schedule and he was shuttled to the downtown hotel on a rare sunny day.

Pearce, who has spearheaded efforts to protect old growth forests, thanked the president for securing protective status for the Headwaters Forest.

"It was one of the hardest things I had to do," Clinton responded, adding in his trademark drawl, "I want to get up there in those old redwood groves now so I can hug one of those trees."

Pearce said that Clinton, while "wonderfully charming," spoke with passion and knowledge about the issues that challenge him, including health care, gun control and mental health. He also spoke candidly about the issue he sees as his greatest failing: a stubborn core of poverty that has persisted even amid the current economic boom.

"It was quite fascinating, because he really does his homework," Pearce said.

"He absolutely did not have to do this," he added. "He was in town for a fund-raiser, and he could have just as easily taken a nap, or whatever a president would do in between fund-raisers. He is still trying to make a difference."

Pearce said Clinton is motivated by "a deep sense of commitment" to secure a lasting peace in the Middle East and in Nigeria and Northern Ireland.

"He plans to continue working on it, even after he leaves office," Pearce said. "He sees himself as an elder statesman, serving the mission of peace, much like [former President] Jimmy Carter."

Clinton began taking questions as soon as the meeting in an oak-paneled, 12th-floor sitting room convened.

Weiner said the president, "like all of us, was shattered by the killing of the 6-year-old child."

He was referring to the Feb. 29 shooting death of Kayla Rolland of Mount Morris Township in Michigan. The first-grader was allegedly shot to death by a classmate who brought an illegally purchased gun to school.

But for Semel, Clinton's response revealed considerable insight into the problems that bedevil the nation's inner cities: "It was interesting to me that his first thought wasn't, 'Isn't it tragic that this child died,' but 'Isn't it tragic that the little boy was being raised in the kinds of conditions that he is' [and] that we must change that."

Prosecutors in the Michigan case say the boy had been living in what they describe as a crack house.

Semel also pushed the president to develop a national policy on solutions to homelessness. He said he would be interested in seating a panel to develop a national policy and would welcome her input and that of George Smith, Mayor Willie Brown's point man on the topic.

She also asked if he would reconsider his stance on a moratorium on the death penalty, as has the Republican governor of Illinois, in light of revelations that many convicted murderers have been found to be innocent.

The Rev. Gerry O'Rourke, a Catholic priest, said, "You know, Mr. President, every major denomination in America has gone on the record opposing the death penalty," including the Reform and Conservative branches of Judaism.

Amos Brown, who is also pastor of Third Baptist Church, said that in a breakfast meeting with Clinton a few weeks ago, he urged the president to meet with local clergy on his next visit to San Francisco.

"The president and I are old friends, going back before he ran for president," Brown said.

Brown said that it is no surprise to him that Clinton has his eye on a post-presidency peace mission. He said Clinton has frequently mentioned his desire to continue to use his skills to promote peace in the coming years.

"He is a committed humanitarian and I have always found him to be consistent in this regard," Brown said.

At the meeting's end, all joined hands and prayed, in the words of the Rev. J. Alfred Smith, pastor of Allen Baptist Temple in Oakland, "commending this president for looking out always for the lowest and the least" in the society.