He also was pulling for better design.

Funny how English treats both pushing and pulling as near synonyms for advocating for.

> pulling for better design.

That doesn't sound idiomatic to me, as someone in the UK.

"I'm pulling for (person)!" means I'm supporting them, I'm hoping succeed, etc. https://english.stackexchange.com/questions/197857/origin-of...

It's less common outside of a person, certainly, but I've heard it in the context of other things, i.e., "I'm pulling for the home team!". While I'm not sure I've heard it in the context of an ideal, I have in the context of a debate, though that, like the other uses, still involves people and a kind of competition (i.e., "I'm pulling for the affirmative"), which aligns it pretty well with design decisions.

I can infer what it means, however only the following sound idiomatic to me as an English (UK) speaker.

"I'm pushing for better design".

"I'm rooting for the home team."

Interesting, I wonder if it's an American idiom, then? I'm not the commenter, but for me it sounds fine.

Americans also root for things. It seems there's a plethora of directions to go when it comes to advocacy.