Relief as Clinton gets off with a rap

By Sridhar Krishnaswami

WASHINGTON, JAN. 20. The 42nd President of the United States, Mr. Bill Clinton kept the promise he made on the day the House of Representatives impeached him that he would be busy till the last hour of the last day. And one of which had to do with a ``deal'' that spared himself possible indictment.

Mr. Clinton agreed to have his law licence suspended for five years and to pay a fine of $25,000 in return for the closure of the disbarment proceedings aginst him in Arkansas. ``I hope my actions today will help bring closure and finality,'' the outgoing President said in a written statement. By all accounts, the ``deal'' against any criminal indictment has been sealed and there is relief all around that the country did not have to go through with the motions of another drama during the first months of the Bush administration. ``The nation's interests have been served. The matter is now concluded,'' said the Independent Counsel, Mr. Robert Ray.

There is relief on Capitol Hill as well, both from Republicans - who went after Mr. Clinton in a determined fashion - and Democrats who went out of their way to save their President. ``There is much to be said for closing this phase of our history,'' said the Lead Manager in the Impeachment Proceedings, Mr. Henry Hyde while Mr. John Conyers, the ranking Democrat in the House Judiciary Committee termed the deal a ``sensible accomodation''.

Ms. Monica Lewinsky, too, heaved a sign of relief. ``I was terrified I would have to testify yet again and I am grateful this Sword of Damocles that was hanging over me has finally been removed,'' Ms. Lewinsky said. What got Mr. Clinton into so much trouble was not the affair per se, but in his denial under oath during the Paula Jones sexual harassment case. In January 1998, Mr. Clinton testified that he did not recall having been alone with Ms. Lewinsky and denied having sexual relations with the former White House intern. Later in August, Mr. Clinton was forced to admit under oath to having a relationship with Ms. Lewinsky. He termed the relationship with Ms. Lewinsky as ``not appropriate''. The President apologised to the nation later.

On Friday, his last full day in office, the President said, ``I've apologised for my conduct and I have done my best to atone for it with my family''. But many have not forgotten the defiance of the President when he said he would fight any indictment. ``I don't believe I should be charged. If that's what they want, I'll be happy to stand and fight,'' Mr. Clinton said in December.

For Mr. Clinton and his wife who have been investigated for over six years on a string of scandals starting with Whitewater, the toll has been more than on the political and personal fronts. It has been a financial drain as well. In 1998, an out of court settlement with Ms. Paula Jones cost the President $850,000; the following year a judge in Arkansas held the President in contempt for providing false testimony and ordered him to pay $90,000 in legal expenses; and now Mr. Clinton has to fork out $25,000.

Americans had given every indication that they were getting tired of the scandals - real and imagined - against the Clintons, especially when the Independent Counsel's office spent some $50 million in investigating Travelgate, Filegate and every other ``Gate'' that came during the eight-year tenure of Mr. Clinton.

The soon-to-be Chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, Mr. Orrin Hatch recently said Mr. George W Bush should pardon Mr. Clinton to ``end a problem in America that needs to be ended''. Mr. Bush seemed to agree when he said it was about time to get all this behind and let the 42nd President ``move on and enjoy life and become an active participant in the American system''. But the incoming Republican President had a small problem as well.

``The suggestion that I would pardon somebody who has never been indicted, that doesn't make any sense to me,'' Mr. Bush said.

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