- The Washington Times - Tuesday, July 19, 2016

Hillary Clinton on Tuesday compared the opening of the Republican National Convention in Cleveland to the classic film “The Wizard of Oz,” calling it a “surreal” affair that offered more proof why voters should reject Donald Trump in November.

Speaking in Las Vegas, the Democratic presidential candidate mocked the GOP gathering and said that, behind all of the pomp and circumstance, there was little in the way of solutions to challenges facing the country.

“Last night in Cleveland was surreal,” Mrs. Clinton told the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees convention. “I kept thinking, what is this like? And then I thought, when I was a little girl, I went to see — when they reissued it, “The Wizard of Oz.” And there were similarities that appeared to me. Lots of sound and fury, even a fog machine. But when you pulled back the curtain it was just Donald Trump with nothing to offer to the American people.”

Mrs. Clinton’s address Tuesday was the latest example of her campaign’s attempt to seize the spotlight during the GOP convention and not give Mr. Trump and the GOP days of uninterrupted media coverage. On Monday, she gave two high-profile speeches — one to the annual NAACP convention and another to the American Federation of Teachers.

And earlier on Tuesday she openly discussed her vice presidential search, keeping her looming choice very much in the news even as the Republican convention continues. She’s expected to announce her No. 2 pick by the end of the week.

But Mrs. Clinton also used Tuesday’s address to convince labor union foot soldiers to work hard for her over the next few months, and she vowed to repay them if elected president.

“I will be by your side in this fight every step of the way,” she said. “When I am president, working people will always have a seat at the table and a champion in the White House.”

• Ben Wolfgang can be reached at bwolfgang@washingtontimes.com.

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