Obama is playing a long-term game. He has seen the strong tendency to shortsightedness in the Republican party (witness the 22nd Amendment - which they passed, and then wanted to repeal so Raygun could run again; witness also their talk of "The Nuclear Option" to eliminate the filibuster, and their excoriation of the "Gang of 14" who put a stop to it - aren't they glad NOW that they didn't get their way?), and is using it to his advantage to secure long-term gains for Democrats in Washington. Unlike the Rethugs and their open talk of a "Permanent Republican Majority", Obama is more subtle and crafty.

This is chess, people, and Obama's playing well enough to put Vishwanathan Anand (current World Chess Champ) to shame. Every time he reaches out, the Rethugs MUST retreat into an unreasonable position or risk being seen as weak by their shrinking base.
He has them in a bind of their own making, where every move they make weakens them further with the larger electorate. If this continues, the Democrats will have a deathgrip on the Government for YEARS.
Or to be more musical about it, Obama's playing the GOP like Jimi Hendrix on a Fender Stratocaster.

Bear in mind that Obama cut his political teeth in Chicago - if you think for ONE SECOND he hasn't
got a plan, you are understimating the man at your peril.