Clinton went to the headlines himself yesterday to zap President Bush for his trade trip to Japan.
Japanese officials have labeled American workers as lazy and said the Japanese had made no promises to buy American cars. Clinton said Bush should have spotlighted products that are selling well instead of pushing cars that Americans themselves are reluctant to buy.
"By parading our weaknesses, he opened us up to the kind of ridicule we are seeing today," Clinton said. "It's clear we got nothing. It appears the only job the president was seeking to save in Japan was his own."
The "lazy" charge, he said, "is a lie. Americans are working harder today than 10 years ago.
"We're working a longer work week and spending less time with our children, and they're paying more for health care, housing, education and in taxes," he said. "They're getting the shaft, and not because they're lazy."
About 400 people, mostly college students and young adults, crowded into the lobby of the Ben Franklin Technology Center, 36th and Market streets, and cheered Clinton's talk.
Prominent was Mayor Rendell, who showed up late for lunch but was front- and-center, applauding frequently, during the speech. Rendell isn't endorsing anyone yet, but had kind words for the five-term governor.
"I like people that have executive experience," he said. " . . . And of all the candidates, he has the single most important accomplishment: what he's done for education in his state."
Wife Midge Rendell and first aide David L. Cohen were guests at a $1,000-a- person luncheon at the Ritz-Carlton Hotel, hosted by state House Speaker Robert O'Donnell and Rendell ally Thomas A. Leonard.
