I think Obama's genuinely frustrated at his party's ideological base. He thinks he's doing the practical, pragmatic thing from a policy standpoint and that they should therefore all get behind it. What he doesn't seem to get is how the politics plays out and that he's putting himself at serious risk of a primary, which would be very bad news if he wants to run for re-election.
Actually, it's Obama who gets how the politics play out and not the Democratic base, personified by House Democrats. The midterm election and Senate Republicans have forced the Democrats' hands. Agree to tax cuts for all or everything else on the liberal wish list dies in the lame duck session with little chance of getting resurrected in the next two years. Don't agree to tax cuts for all, and the new House and Senate will pass them in January anyway. Democrats lost the midterms - and that makes the filibuster work well for Republicans.
