While the GOP is on the ropes , there are glimmers of hope on the horizon. Even though Barack Obama remains popular (though not noticeably more than any other recent Presidents at this time in their administrations), his policies are increasingly unpopular.

Also,while taxes and regulations have not been as potent a political issue as they have in years past (because, Ronald Reagan lowered them as did George W. Bush), this may change because under Obama, both taxes and the regulations are on the rise. We have seen scattered outbreaks like the tea parties, where ordinary Americans have expressed these concerns.

But citizen outrage will rise when the actual tax increases become a reality. We have seen real world examples of this in our federal system. States that have followed the model that Barack Obama is imposing on our nation as a whole have seen the electorate express their anger at their governors.

Two examples of this are found in Massachusetts and New York. Deval Patrick, Governor of Massachusetts, was Barack Obama's role model, in a sense. Both had the same campaign manager, both used the same lines in their speeches. And more importantly, both have the same ideas regarding how to run a government.

Deval Patrick has helped his state live up to its sobriquet Taxachusetts. Its citizens are moving to New Hampshire - a state with no income tax. Those who are not moving there are driving there to buy goods to escape sky-high sales taxes (especially on liquor). Patrick has explored the possibility of random stops of vehicles coming into Massachusetts to discover whether residents are escaping sales and use taxes by buying liquor over the border.

Is it any wonder that Congressman  Bill Delahunt of Massachusetts (a Democrat) is leading the effort in Congress to tax internet sales? Amazon has been one of the few retailers to prosper over the last year, due to the fact that purchasers do not pay sales tax on their purchases from out of state vendors though most states do require purchasers to pay these taxes. It must be the most widely flouted law in America).

His popularity is plummeting. President Obama may rescue Patrick from ignominy by putting him on the Supreme Court.

A similar course has been visible in New York. Governor David Paterson came into office as a result of Eliot Spitzer's resignation, He was popular. The operative word: was. His popularity also has plummeted as he has caved into the demands of unions; refused to cut the budget; imposed a series of anti-business rules that is driving business away from the state; and erected a tax regime that has made living in New York a financial burden as it never has before. Moreover, New York now enjoys the distinction of being the least "free" of our states - a fact that is true in more ways than one.

Barack Obama is riding a wave of personal popularity. He grew up in Hawaii. He should know that waves come crashing into the shore. As his policies begin to have real world impact; as his bag of budget tricks runs empty and he is forced to raise taxes to cover his trillion dollar budget deficits, that wave will also come crashing down.

Americans revel in their freedom. The statist approach to our society just will not work in America.  Americans will not only vote with their feet (states with high level of freedom are booming and enjoying immigration from states with low degrees of freedom) but at the voting booth as well.