Sorry Navigator66, that was rude and uncalled for. Let me try again.
Centrism is a defense of the status quo. Most every positive social change you care to name was denounced as radical agitation by the powers that be, whether it’s uprisings against feudalism, ending slavery, the expansion of worker’s rights, and maybe someday passing UHC in America (knocks on wood). Ostensibly, the point of politics in a democratic society is to change the opinions of other people to agree with your programs. For example, in 1966 MLK had a 63% percent disapproval rating, now his approval in the 90s. That’s the Overton window at work.
Political opinions in America are not on a bell curve. There isn’t a large group of centrists waiting to be wooed by a sober minded wonk who gives speeches about working together. To the extent the elite center consensus exists, people are fleeing from it. You say “Desperate times call for desperate measures.” Exactly, desperate measures – not warmed over half-measures. Especially since so many of our current problems were caused by, or are a reaction to, self-styled neoliberal centrists, whether it’s military intervention, deregulation, union busting, or aggressive policing.
An amalgamated middle, depending on how you interpret polls, might resemble Trump’s campaign promises quite a bit – bellicose nationalism with a veneer of economic populism.