Deals have happened because Republicans and Democrats alike have worked together quietly, while keeping public attention focused on high-profile, deeply polarized disagreements over things like gun regulation and the Environmental Protection Agency.
By making sure nobody on the outside knows what deals are being discussed, outside groups have less opportunity and incentive to act as spoilers or draw red lines. Even a huge share of the members of Congress who are ultimately asked to vote for the bills are in the dark about the negotiation as it is happening. Not coincidentally, many of the deals are deeply transactional — represented a least common denominator nexus of interest group demands rather than a high-minded, principles-based effort at reform.
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