Exclusive: Speaker Nancy Pelosi Says She Has 'No Regrets'

She conceded she was surprised by the magnitude of the Democratic loss and thought that as many as 20 close elections were going to go Democratic.

"They were falling our way and $100 million approximately weighed in in those races and changed the atmosphere in last couple of weeks," she said.

With the 2010 election over, she said that the Democrats are ready to regroup and made a plea for cooperation.

"Let's just do what is right for the American people. And those of us who are involved in politics and government know that our responsibility is to the American people, that we have a responsibility to find our common ground, to seek it and to find it."

ABC News

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi speaks with Diane... View Full Caption

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi speaks with Diane Sawyer one day after a Republican landslide stripped her of the power that defined her historic tenure as the first female Speaker of the House. Close

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Republicans reacted to the news, predicting that if Pelosi is successful in her run for minority leader, it will lead to more House Democrats going down in the 2012 elections.

"Given that there are now 60-plus defeated Democrat House members urgently seeking jobs due to Nancy Pelosi's failed leadership, we welcome her decision to run for House Minority Leader based on her proven ability to create jobs for Republican lawmakers," Ken Spain, communications director at the National Republican Congressional Committee, said. "The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again, and expecting a different result. Of course, if House Democrats are willing to sacrifice more of their members in 2012 for the glory of Nancy Pelosi, we are happy to oblige them."