A quiet man from a political backwater has managed what no national or foreign pressure had before: US Senator Jim Jeffords has put a spanner in George W Bush's conservative legislative juggernaut.

Vermont's residents may be known for their independence but it seems no one reckoned on the need to manage all wings of the Republican party in a split Senate.

It's not that Senator Jeffords's defection to become an Independent will fundamentally affect the voting patterns within the Senate, where he has already sided regularly with the Democrats. The issue for President Bush is that the Democrats, as the largest party in the Senate, will now assume the key positions and set the agenda.

Mr Bush may have got his tax-cutting budget, but it may be some time before he can celebrate another landmark victory on spending priorities.