His approach was different: he was a controversialist who attempted to generate agreement. [fact]
Friedman's pre de ces sors in the Mont Pèlerin Society had largely aligned themselves with a rhetoric of deliberate moderation, attempting to pull their mainstream colleagues closer to their positions by ceding ground wherever possible. His approach was different: he was a controversialist who attempted to generate agreement by restructuring the very terms of the debate.
Angus Burgin, The Great Persuasion, loc. 472