President Clinton's chances of surviving the Monica Lewinsky crisis have improved with a spirited defence from his wife, a well-received State of the Union address and better than expected poll ratings.
The President was greeted with applause when he walked into the chamber of the House of Representatives at 2.10 a.m. Irish time to deliver his address. He smiled and shook hands with Democratic members and his own Cabinet, which sat in the front row.
Speaker Newt Gingrich introduced the President, who appeared a little tense. Mrs Hillary Clinton applauded vigorously from the distinguished visitors' gallery. The strongest applause came when Mr Clinton announced that the budget would be balanced this year for the first time in decades.
Shortly before the President's speech, it was reported that a married man in Portland, Oregon had had a five-year affair with Ms Lewinsky. His attorney told a press conference that she had "bragged" of having an affair with a high-ranking person in the White House.
But there has also been criticism of what is seen as irresponsible reporting by the media of unconfirmed rumours: a Dallas newspaper had to withdraw its report that a Secret Service agent discovered the President and Ms Lewinsky in a compromising position in the White House.
Mr Clinton's fate could still depend on the secret bargaining between Ms Lewinsky's lawyer and the independent counsel, Mr Kenneth Starr. She, reportedly, is demanding immunity from perjury charges if she retracts her sworn statement that she had a prolonged sexual affair with Mr Clinton and that he urged her to deny this.
Ms Lewinsky's appearance before a grand jury to be questioned by Mr Starr on her allegations was postponed as the immunity deal was being considered. But President Clinton's personal secretary, Ms Betty Currie, did testify in private. Ms Currie was expected to be questioned about Ms Lewinsky's movements at the White House after she had been transferred to the Pentagon.
Mrs Hillary Clinton, in her first televised interview since the present crisis broke, told millions of viewers on the Today programme that "the important thing now is to stand as firmly as I can and say that the President has denied these allegations, on all counts, unequivocally, and we'll see how this plays out".
She said that behind the present crisis is "this vast right-wing conspiracy that has been conspiring against my husband since the day he announced for President".
Asked if Mr Clinton should resign if it were proved he had "an adulterous liaison" in the White House, Mrs Clinton said: "If all that were proven true, I think that would be a very serious offence. That is not going to be proven true. I think we're going to find some other things."
Mrs Clinton also attacked Mr Starr as "a politically-motivated prosecutor who is allied with right-wing opponents of my husband, who has literally spent four years looking at every telephone call we've made, every cheque we've written, scratching for dirt, intimidating witnesses, doing everything possible to try and make some accusation against my husband".
Mr Starr later issued a statement calling Mrs Clinton's charges "nonsense".
White House staff, however, found Mrs Clinton's robust interview a morale-booster. Even Ms Lewinsky's attorney, Mr William Ginsburg, said he was impressed by it. A New York Times poll taken at the weekend shows President Clinton's approval ratings have fallen only two points, to 56 per cent, since last December. His ratings on the economy and foreign policy are the highest of his Presidency.
But there is a sharp drop in the number who say that Mr Clinton shares the moral values most Americans try to live by. This has fallen 15 points, to 40 per cent. Women, however, take a less critical view of Mr Clinton's alleged behaviour than men.
President concentrates on foreign policy and reform: page 12; Hillary blames "vast right-wing conspiracy": page 13