Sen. Orrin G. Hatch, chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, suggested earlier this week that President-elect George W. Bush pardon President Clinton, regardless of whether he is indicted.

Hatch's gesture comes at a time when the country is divided both politically and ideologically. Just recently, some Democrats were even toying with the idea of proposing a co-majority leader in the House.

Independent counsel Robert Ray has considered indicting Clinton on perjury charges, which led to Clinton's impeachment two years ago.

If there's one thing that Americans are tired of, besides the word "election," it's the word "independent counsel."

Bush has already said that he isn't going to pardon someone who hasn't been indicted. Let's make it simple then.

Don't indict Clinton.

In the words of Hatch, "It's time to let President Clinton fade into whatever he's going to fade into, and I just don't see keeping it alive any longer."

In no way are we condoning Clinton's past. We are not justifying his false testimony. But it's not as if he hasn't faced any consequences for his wrongdoings.

He has been impeached. He has faced and continues to face the condemnation of our Puritannical society, one that conveniently forgets that many presidents in the past had extramarital affairs, including Franklin Delano Roosevelt and John F. Kennedy.

They simply had a more sympathetic (and less civic-minded) press corps in that reporters back then simply ignored their presidents' bedroom behavior by looking the other way.

Now, not only is Clinton going to go down in history as the president who enjoyed oral sex in the Oval Office from an intern, he may be disbarred and, consequently, will be denied the privilege of practicing his profession.

Yes, he deserves all of these things, but will enough be enough? When are the Clinton-haters going to be satisfied? When he is burned at the stake, preferably with Hillary at his side? Perhaps the First Lady was right when she said there was a right-wing conspiracy, one led initially by Ken Starr.

Indicting Clinton means that millions of taxpayer dollars will be spent on dragging out an issue that had already been beaten to death. After six long years, the committee on Whitewater recently closed their investigation, finding their probe "inconclusive."

Americans don't want another multimillion dollar investigation on the Monica debacle, and they certainly don't want another "inconclusive" report. There's no point in wasting anymore time or money on an issue that has long lost its significance.

Let the lame duck fade away. Let him adjust to his new role as the husband of the junior senator from New York.

After all, there's a new guy to pick on at the White House.