They can still miscalculate the intensity of the backlash or the willingness of people to do something about it. Many such stories. "The enemy has a plan so let's do nothing" is a great way to get consistently rolled in the world. As the saying goes, everyone has a plan until they are punched in the face; dishing out the occasional (and in this case fully metaphorical) punch in the face is not a hopeless endeavor.

(I agree with some other threads that merely signing a random petition is not a punch to the face. That's just whining. Systematic and organized, perhaps, but just whining.)