A huge majority of Americans (85 per cent) approve of President Clinton's decision to testify in the Monica Lewinsky investigation but two-thirds still believe he had sexual relations with her. This follows the announcement on Tuesday by one of Mr Clinton's lawyers, Mr David Kendall, that the president would voluntarily submit to questioning at the White House on August 17th on the alleged liaison with Ms Lewinsky. His testimony will be recorded on videotape.
The latest polls show a bewildering range of opinion in the US about the president's role in a saga which has been fascinating the country and much of the world since it burst on the public last January. The latest poll by USA Today/CNN/Gallup has good news for Mr Clinton. As well as the widespread support for his decision this week to give videotaped testimony to the grand jury, his general approval ratings are remaining at the mid-sixties where they have stayed consistently all this year in spite of the stream of anti-Clinton coverage.
In another less favourable development for the president, it is widely reported that Ms Lewinsky has had to hand over incriminating evidence to the independent counsel Mr Kenneth Starr in return for her immunity from prosecution.
This evidence includes a dress which Ms Lewinsky is alleged to have told her former colleague, Ms Linda Tripp, has evidence of a physical relationship with the president.
The dress has been sent to the FBI laboratory for DNA testing. When reports of such a dress with potentially damaging evidence for the president of an affair with Ms Lewinsky surfaced earlier this year, Mr Starr ordered a search of her apartment and a number of dresses were taken away and subjected to DNA testing. But the results were negative.
Now it appears that Ms Lewinsky had previously sent the dress to her mother for safe-keeping as well as audio-tapes of messages left by President Clinton on her answering machine. These tapes are said to show that there was a close friendship between the president and Ms Lewinsky but not necessarily a romantic one.
The dress and the tapes could be important material exhibits in Mr Starr's investigation, especially if President Clinton continues to deny that there was any sexual relationship with Ms Lewinsky while she reverses her sworn testimony of last January and says there was.
The White House, which had dismissed the earlier reports about the existence of such a dress, says it has no comment on the latest ones. "We're not going to respond to this kind of rumour," a spokesman said.
Ms Lewinsky is preparing to give testimony to the grand jury, possibly next week. Her testimony could be spread out over at least a week, as in the case of Ms Tripp who made eight separate appearances.
President Clinton will also have to prepare for his testimony on August 17th at the White House. But he has a very busy schedule over the coming weeks involving domestic travel and preparation for his trips to Russia and Ireland.
The president will take heart from some findings of the latest polls. Only 24 per cent say he should be impeached if Ms Lewinsky now swears that she had sex with him and that he encouraged her to hide this without asking her to lie.
But another poll by the Wall Street Journal/NBC News has 45 per cent saying impeachment proceedings should be started if Mr Starr concludes that the president committed perjury by denying sex with Ms Lewinsky. Asked whether the president's personal life matters 56 per cent said it did not matter. But 43 per cent says "it matters because the president's moral character is important".
Reuters adds: The British Prime Minister, Mr Tony Blair, yesterday showered praise on President Clinton.
"I think he's a very fine president. He is someone I have got a great deal of time and respect for," Mr Blair told BBC radio. "I have found him a tremendous person to work with - not just in Northern Ireland but across a range of international issues."
The US Justice Department said yesterday it had outlined to the family of the civil rights leader Martin Luther King its plan in response to their request for an investigation into his assassination 30 years ago.
The Associate Attorney General, Mr Raymond Fisher, said: "We have discussed with them orally what kind of process we would follow to see if that meets their concerns." His comments marked the first time the department, which has extensively discussed the review with the White House, has acknowledged that it has been in discussions with the King family.