President Clinton and his adversary, Mr Ken Starr, are being asked to give evidence to the Congressional committee which will help decide if the President is to face impeachment charges.
The Chairman of the Judiciary Committee, Mr Henry Hyde, announced yesterday that he would be calling Mr Starr on November 19th to testify about the contents of his report which concludes that there are 15 grounds for impeaching the President.
Mr Hyde said that he was not calling the President before the committee but he was sending him a letter asking him "to admit or deny certain facts which appear to be established by the record now before us."
The President's reply would help the committee to decide which facts are in dispute and which facts are not, Mr Hyde said.
If the President co-operates it should be possible for the committee to complete its work by the end of the year. If the committee recommends impeachment then the full House of Representatives would vote on it, Mr Hyde said, but it would then be up to the Senate to decide whether to try the President or settle for a censure or rebuke..
Mr Clinton, speaking yesterday before Mr Hyde's announcement, said that he wanted the committee hearings to be "constitutional, fair and expeditious". He refused further comment saying that "at the appropriate time we will say whatever we have to say."
One of the matters the Hyde committee will want to clarify is the contradiction between the testimony of the President and Ms Monica Lewinsky as to whether they had sexual relations as defined by lawyers. Ms Lewinsky testified that they had but the President said in his August 17th broadcast admitting their affair that his denial under oath of sexual relations was "legally accurate".
Some observers believe that the President will be advised by his lawyers not to go any further in his reply to Mr Hyde than he did in his testimony to the grand jury which is available to the committee.
Meanwhile, reports of a revolt among Republicans against the leadership of Speaker Newt Gingrich because of the disappointing mid-term election results were gaining ground on Capitol Hill yesterday. Mr Gingrich, who at one stage had predicted a gain of 40 seats for the Republicans and who authorised TV ads about the Lewinsky affair which backfired, is being seen as a scapegoat for the poor performance of the party.
The Republican caucus will meet in two weeks to decide on the leadership posts and already several rivals to Mr Gingrich and the leader in the House, Mr Dick Armey, are emerging. Mr Gingrich, who has taken responsibility for the failed election strategy, narrowly survived an attempted leadership coup by younger Republicans in 1997 but his position is now much weaker.
The chairman of the Appropriations Committee, Mr Robert Livingston of Louisiana, is said to be considering challenging Mr Gingrich.
The Democratic successes are causing their leader in the house, Mr Dick Gephardt, to think seriously about his chances of becoming speaker after the next election, in which Democrats would need to gain only seven seats to become the majority.