Its actually borne out by the statistics. Generally few people get what they want in FPTP but the public can often avoid what it doesnt want as long as there's not a 3rd party. The major problem is donors pick the party candidates in both parties unless more people start voting in primaries.

If you watched the dem primary in NY you saw the difference in tone for a ranked choice election. Politicians can win in platforms there because RCV can actually deliver popular candidates.

I do think it works better if people retaliate against senators and house reps for specific votes rather than party vibes. You want the politicians afraid to vote against the public not riding poll numbers on seats.