The Republican Party as a whole received something of a set-back in the recent mid-term Congressional elections, which were widely seen as an indictment of the Republican's heavy-handed assault upon President Clinton's morality and integrity.

And while the Republicans still control both Houses of Congress, the principal architect of the party's current policies - the out-going House Speaker Newt Gingrich - was forced to resign. His decisions to step-down has left a power vacuum at the very heart of the Republican Party.

There is considerable debate as to the merits of the original case against the President, and as far as the Democratic fund-raising during the 1996 Presidential campaign is concerned, there is very little hard evidence.

Although beliefs that that Chinese money from shadowy sources was channelled into the bid to re-elect Mr Clinton have created a lot of sound and fury in Washington, the only clear decision so far is that of the Federal Election Commission which has found malpractice in the campaigns of both President Clinton and his Republican opponent Bob Dole.

The fact that, despite all this, the House Republicans on the Judiciary Committee are pushing so hard is also a sign of how difficult the Republican Party is becoming to manage.

And even if the House were to impeach the President it is doubtful that the Senate would remove him from office.

Some compromise on a form of censure remains the most likely outcome. The problem is, how to get from here to there.