ABC NEWS POLL: CLINTON AND IMPEACHMENT

Majority Still Opposes Impeachment, but Half Favor a Perjury Trial After '00

Analysis by Gary Langer, ABC News

A bare majority of Americans say Bill Clinton should be charged with perjury and put on trial after his term of office ends two years from now, although by about a 2-1 margin the public continues to oppose impeaching him before then.

Fifty-one percent in an ABC News poll say Clinton should be tried for perjury after his term ends in 2000; 45 percent oppose it. Supporters of a trial after Clinton leaves office include about a third of those who oppose impeachment now.

These results comport with the majority's long-held view that, while lying under oath is wrong, lying about an extramarital affair does not in itself warrant impeaching a president and removing him from office.

IMPEACH - After more than two weeks of hearings by the House Judiciary Committee, 64 percent still oppose impeaching Clinton, while 33 percent support it. Those fall between Clinton's recent best numbers, just before the Nov. 3 election, and his recent worst, after the Sept. 21 release of his videotaped testimony before the Starr grand jury.

CENSURE - Another penalty option, censure, continues to command majority support. Fifty-nine percent say Congress should censure, or officially reprimand, Clinton. That's down a bit from a peak of 68 percent in mid-September.

COMMITTEE - The House Judiciary Committee, meanwhile, has not won sterling marks for its work-not surprising, since majorities in previous ABC polls have said it shouldn't bother with hearings in the first place. Thirty-four percent in this survey approve of the way the committee is handling its investigation; 59 percent disapprove.

GROUPS - Opinion on impeachment continues to break sharply along political lines, with 60 percent of Republicans favoring Clinton's ouster, but only 13 percent of Democrats and 30 percent of independents agreeing. But independents narrowly side with Republicans on the question of charging Clinton with perjury and putting him on trial after his term ends; 72 percent of Republicans and 51 percent of independents support this, compared to 33 percent of Democrats.

METHODOLOGY - This poll was conducted by telephone Dec. 2-6 among a random national sample of 1,006 adults. The results have a three-point error margin. Field work by ICR/International Communications Research, of Media, PA.