At the same time, the left realized that their techniques of debate fail miserably against the monolith of the right, especially after seeing that radicals were rewarded (tea party movement.. all the way to MAGA)
So they are also imitating this pattern.
I know so, because if I dig back enough, I’ll find the comments that predicted this.
The left is radicalizing to match the political capability of republicans.
I don't think it was a deliberate attempt to match the debating styles, but I do think it's a natural pattern to exercise power where you find it.
Honestly, I find Paul's description of the process pretty compelling, if not correct in all the details.