I fear you credit them with too much machiavellianism. Women are known more for their emotional reactions to things. Although there are exceptions.

I have a different theory. Women + Power = Sadism. Women lack the emotional regulation of men. This is biological in basis. The amygdala that regulates emotions is 80 percent bigger in men.

Much of what we see simply needs reigned in by men. A hard NO. So to some extent men are to blame. Women have a natural desire to shit test men, and all we are seeing is a societal shit test where, deep down, the women expect us to stand firm and say no.