The trope is so common that there even is an xkcd for it:
I mean, when you miss 85% of the stuff, you gotta admit that, perhaps, your stuff is wrong
And yes, it can work even if it is wrong
Everybody also acknowledges that there are issue with DM, it's just that every other known model has bigger issues.
When you write "this is the [..] most common objection laypeople have", I understood "In contrast with the experts who know better"
Of course, if as you say, everybody knows that this is a wrong, specifying "laypeople" seems unnecessary
That model would be “true” no? Assuming of course that it’s possible to come up with a list of observations that covers “it all” and we won’t one day see something weird and new that contradicts our theory.