“that wording is intentionally misleading.”
Yeah, you can’t “earn a PhD (ABD).” There’s no such thing. You list the M.A. as a credential, and then you can list your years as a PhD candidate with the ABD conclusion. I consider that biography dishonest. You may know as much as a PhD, and you may have worked way harder than another MA, but you cannot put a PhD you didn’t earn anywhere on your resume/bio except in the context of your candidacy.