Nobody else has said it so I feel I have to. He made several criticisms of israel, like concessions to the internet, and forumed speakers who were critical of israel, inviting them to events, literally RIGHT before his death. Basically, he broke profile in the last 6 months to defy before your hitherto-accurate description of his gatekeeping up to that point.

But, to be fair, that's regarding israel in particular, and not descriptive of an outright turnaround against con inc.