Impact of the incident

【明報專訊】Under the American constitution, the Speaker of the House is the third most influential political figure in the US, after the President and the Vice President.

US President Barack Obama (美國總統奧巴馬), a Democrat, admitted his party was defeated in the 2010 election, saying, "My hope is that I can cooperate with Republicans... But obviously, the kinds of compromises that will be made depend on what Capitol Hill looks like-who's in charge."

Analysts say President Barack Obama is likely to be faced with a gridlock because the Democrats have lost control of Congress. One may expect his health care programme and plan of financial reform to meet with tough obstruction.