Clinton's debate moment: turning point or end game?

By Jeff Mason - Analysis

AUSTIN, Texas (Reuters) - Was it a pivotal moment that could change the campaign, or the swan song of a candidate who may be nearing the end of her U.S. presidential bid?

Hillary Clinton's concluding statement in a televised debate on Thursday drew a standing ovation from the audience and plaudits from analysts.

But some said her words -- which touched on her personal trials while complimenting her rival, Barack Obama -- came too late in a contest that has largely turned in his direction.

Obama, a senator from Illinois, has surged into front-runner status in the dash to become the Democratic nominee after 10 straight wins in the state-by-state nomination process.

Clinton, a senator from New York, has pinned her hopes on decisive wins in Texas and Ohio, which hold their contests on March 4, and aimed to slow his momentum at the debate.

The two engaged in a mostly civil discussion that covered their positions on Cuba, health care, and the war in Iraq.

When asked at the end to name a crisis that had tested their leadership, Obama talked broadly of his life story.

But Clinton responded with an apparent reference to the sexual scandal that led to the impeachment of her husband, former President Bill Clinton, and a national discussion about the state of their marriage.

"Well, I think everybody here knows I've lived through some crises and some challenging moments in my life," she said to applause from the crowd at the University of Texas.

"But people often ask me, 'How do you do it?' You know, 'How do you keep going?' And I just have to shake my head in wonderment, because with all of the challenges that I've had, they are nothing compared to what I see happening in the lives of Americans every single day."

She went on to describe in emotional terms the disabled soldiers she had recently met and then said she was "honored" to be sharing the stage with Obama, the first black candidate to have a real chance of winning the Democratic nomination.

"It was a good moment for her, she conveyed a message about America and she connected with the audience, and perhaps the viewers," said Julian Zelizer, professor of history and public affairs at Princeton University.

"For her supporters, moments like those reveal why much of the criticism of her candidacy and personality are simply not true."

END OF THE ROAD?

Clinton's advisers portrayed her closing comments as a turning point.