A centrist is NOT somebody who takes a bit from the right and a bit from the left. A centrist is somebody who REJECTS the right and the left, and builds their understanding based on the facts on the ground.

Sometimes that leads somebody towards an understanding of a thing that is left-leaning, and sometimes that leads to an understanding that is right-leaning. But if you’re going to talk about what a centrist is, please get it right first.