The Speaker of the House leads the House of Representatives. Think of it as the Prime Minister of a parliament with much less power. So while the Senate can technically still function, and the executive branch can still function, no one has enough support to “form a government” in the House, so no laws are able to pass, even if the Senate passes a bill. The situations are obviously very different, but the current issues with the Spanish government are a good way of understanding the Speaker drama. Maybe things will improve after the 2024 elections, but i have zero confidence with the iron grip the Republican party has over the majority of state governments.