<Tr> <Td> April 20 </Td> <Td> Deepwater Horizon oil spill: The BP oil rig Deepwater Horizon exploded in the Gulf of Mexico, killing 11 workers and spilling 4.9 million barrels of oil into the Gulf over an 87 - day period; being the largest marine oil spill in the history of the petroleum industry . </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Td> July 21 </Td> <Td> The Dodd - Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act was signed into law; establishing the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau . </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Td> November 2 </Td> <Td> United States Senate elections, 2010: The Republican Party gained five seats, to forty - seven, reducing the Democratic presence in the Senate to fifty - one . Two seats remained in the hands of independents . </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Td> United States House of Representatives elections, 2010: The Republican Party gained sixty - two seats, giving them an absolute majority of 242 in the House and reducing the Democratic presence to 193 . </Td> </Tr>

What events led to the founding of the united states