Hillary's Teardrop

One-liners. Emotional moments. Over-the-top speeches. All have done in prominent presidential contenders.

Way back in 1967, George Romney (yes, current GOP presidential aspirant Mitt Romney's dad) stated that he was more supportive of the Vietnam war effort after touring the southeast Asia nation with U.S. military leaders who had "brainwashed" him. Romney, who ultimately was against the war, showed mental weakness by allowing the fact that others could completely change his deeply held positions.

A few years later, in snowy New Hampshire, Maine Senator Edmund Muskie apparently began crying as he defended charges that his wife was emotionally unstable. The pity party did little to alleviate the accusations against his wife by the Manchester Union-Leader newspaper, but apparently marked Muskie himself as a bit too emotional for the position of commander-in-chief.

A third example took place in the last presidential election cycle. On the night that former front runner, Howard Dean, lost the Iowa Caucuses, he ranted about his campaign going on and gave a weird whooping sound at the end of his screeching. This strange moment froze Dean for all eternity and single handedly ended any hopes he had of becoming president.

A moment in time. There for the world to see. In most political situations, a time of doom. And yet this past weekend we might have witnessed another dramatic moment that might become inscribed in our memories not for negativity but as a remembrance when a certain candidate truly began her campaign for the White House. Based on yesterday's New Hampshire results, this peek into someone's soul might be the springboard that person needed to become our next president.

By now most are aware that Hillary Clinton facing the onslaught of Obamamania, great dips in scientific polling, and a media blitz that for the most part was already writing her eulogy, experienced an epiphany of sorts. Asked at a morning breakfast meeting "How she does it?", Clinton took off the mask and shyness that surrounds her public persona and allowed all of us, just for a moment, to see within her soul. She said it was not easy campaigning within all the negativity but she became teary eyed and her voice broke for a second or so as she talked about her passion to help "all of us."

The iron lady had broken. The attempt to push her gender aside to show that she could be a tough leader was over. For maybe the first time in this long national campaign the real person shone through. She is caring. She is competent. And yes she can shed tears and still be one we can trust. Whether this will be enough to stop Senator Obama's momentum will be decided by voters in Nevada, South Carolina, and beyond. But for the voters in New Hapshire, Hillary's human moment, warranted her a second chance.