The worst practitioners of this are the mainstream Democrats in the US. They seem to think that being the class swot and calling out procedural errors and general hypocrisy is enough of an offer to the electorate.

While I don't entirely disagree I think it's important to remember that Democrats are fighting authoritarian populism and a crucial element of that is maintaining respect for government institutions, the rule of law and the process of American Democracy among the wider population. If they just give up and fight on the same level as the Republicans then all those things get eroded and you very likely end up with a civil war or collapse into authoritarianism. The appearance of legitimacy and propriety is especially important with keeping law enforcement and the military in line who at a point of emergency are the ultimate king makers in any state.

That said I do agree they urgently need to be more assertive about flexing the muscles of the state in dealing with some of the criminals on the Republican right and hopefully the January 6th Committee will yield some results. They should also discard some of the politeness, raise the political rhetoric and start closing the loopholes that the Republicans are exploiting to distort the will of the US people. The November elections are crucial.