If someone is looking for a hyper-condensed summation of what has gone wrong in the U.S.A. in recent decades that have helped make Democrats the ‘party of the ultra-rich and ultra-poor,’ to paraphrase Democratic Congressman Seth Moulton (MA-D), look no further than what actor and activist Danny Glover said over a decade ago. Then fast forward to the left-leaning (i.e.: meaning, more pro-Democratic) Atlantic revealed in a fresh interview of Rep. Moulton conducted by Russell Berman. Berman asked Rep. Moulton: “What do you think that says about Democrats?” Congressman Moulton replied: “The first thing it says is that we’ve lost touch with a lot of people in America. In many ways, we have become the party of the ultrarich and the ultra-poor, and a lot of people in the middle think Democrats are out of touch…we can’t come up with practical solutions to the problems facing many Americans across the country, that we’re more concerned about identity politics than American values. These are things that we have to address now.” (Bold emphasis added by MHProNews). Left-leaning NPR previously called Moulton: “A critic of party leadership.”

Before someone cheers or jeers as a result of what Moulton expressed in those few lines to Berman via the Atlantic, note that the congressman from Massachusetts briefly ran as a Democratic hopeful for president in 2020. Stop and consider the following items that were not part of Berman’s Atlantic interview.

Per Moulton’s House website, he is “a former Marine Corps Officer (four tours in the Iraq war), a member of the Democratic Party, and U.S. Representative for Massachusetts’s 6th Congressional district. He is also a Harvard graduate with a B.S. in physics and master’s degrees in business and public administration. His interests include better communication with young voters, biotech entrepreneurialism, and a breadth of policy issues.”

Left-leaning Wikipedia stated: “during Moulton’s fourth tour of duty in Iraq, General David Petraeus requested that he be assigned to work as a special liaison with tribal leaders in Southern Iraq.”

Per the left-leaning Soros funded Open Secrets website: “Seth Moulton’s estimated net worth for 2018 is $728534.” But more recent information from Quiver Quantitative says this.

Seth Moulton Trading Activity

Seth Moulton. Democratic / House / Massachusetts. $5.02M Net Worth Est. $1.65M Trade Volume. 17 Total Trades. Aug 18, 2023 Last Traded. Current Member Yes …”

So, during his term in Congress, Multon went from a reported net worth in 2018 of $728,534 to a net worth of some $5.02 million. That calls to mind a quote which per GoodReads was uttered by Democratic President Harry S. Truman, who said: “Show me a man that gets rich by being a politician, and I’ll show you a crook.”

The above is about 450 words, which takes about 3 minutes to read. Is that entirely fair to Moulton? No. Of course not. At best those few paragraphs tee up some areas of potential areas of interest and concern. But there is more to ponder as a result of Moulton’s remarks: In many ways, “we have become the party of the ultrarich and the ultra-poor, and a lot of people in the middle think Democrats are out of touch…”

From the USMCu.edu (United States Marine Corps University) website in an article entitled “Political Warfare and Propaganda” are these statements.

Digital influence warfare involves the use of persuasion tactics, information and disinformation, provocation, identity deception, computer network hacking, altered videos and images, cyberbullying, and many other types of activity explored in this issue of the Journal of Advanced Military Studies. The attacker (or “influencer”) seeks to weaponize information against a target in order to gain the power needed to achieve the goals articulated in their strategic influence plan. Some goals may involve changing the target’s beliefs and behaviors, prompting the targets to question their beliefs in the hopes that once those beliefs have been undermined, the targets may change their minds. Other goals may include manufacturing uncertainty to convince the target that nothing may be true and anything may be possible.³⁷ In other instances, the goals of an influence strategy could include strengthening the target’s certainty, even their commitment to believing in things that are actually untrue.

The central goal of influence attacks is—according to a recent report by Rand—“to cause the target to behave in a manner favorable to the influencer.”³⁸ The influencer may seek to disrupt the target’s information environment—for example, interrupting the flow of information between sources and intended recipients of an organization, or on a broader level, between the target’s government and its citizens. Similarly, the influencer may also seek to degrade the quality, efficiency, and effectiveness of the target’s communication capabilities, which may involve flooding channels of communication with misinformation and disinformation. …”

How much of such training was Moulton exposed to in his role working for “General David Petraeus requested that he [Moulton] be assigned to work as a special liaison with tribal leaders in Southern Iraq” is unclear. But is it a stretch to think that Moulton’s job was in some measure to influence locals to “cause the target to behave in a manner favorable to the influencer,” as the USMC and the Journal of Advanced Military Studies suggested?

We have been living in an era of what might be described as information warfare for decades.  Some of that effort to “weaponize information against a target in order to gain the power needed to achieve the goals articulated in their strategic influence plan” arguably comes from corporations, some from trade groups, some from nonprofits, big media, big tech, and big government, foreign and domestic. Never forget what a higher-ranking Marine officer said decades before Moulton.  Per General Smedley Butler, “War is a Racket.” Vocabulary says that: “Informally, the word racket also means “illegal scheme,” especially for making money.” Racket is the root of racketeering, which Oxford Languages defines as: “a person [or persons] who engages in dishonest and fraudulent business dealings.” That racket is meant to benefit politicians and specific business interests.

 

 

Before pressing ahead, some further thoughts on Moulton, who is viewed by some as a rising star among Democrats, is useful.

Moulton clearly grasps that millions within the Democratic Party ranks are frustrated. After only some 3.3 years of Biden-Harris and largely Democratic control of the federal government, that time and those policies yielded a population that is largely worse off than it was during the Trump Presidency. Pure lies may work with some for a time, said President Abraham Lincoln (R), but you can’t fool all of the people all of the time.  From the perspective of someone experienced and perhaps trained in specialized (meaning, manipulative) communications, as Moulton could be, perhaps the craftier approach would be to use some truth and mix in some deception. That mix of truth and untruth, be it paltering, ‘true lies,’ spin, propaganda, lying by omission, or whatever someone may aptly call it, is a tactic. Why do people lie or deceive? The classic scene from the movie Charade explained it succinctly. Cary Grant’s character Peter Joshua brilliantly summed it up: “Usually it’s because they [the deceiver(s) or liar(s)] want something. They are afraid the truth won’t get it for them.”

 

 

Moulton endorsed Joe Biden in 2020. In his interview with Bergman in the Atlantic, Rep. Moulton said:

I think that President Biden, in his heart, understands what I’m saying, and that’s why he talks so much about being a middle-of-the-road guy. But I also think it’s true that he and his administration have catered too much to the left in the past few years, pursuing policies that are popular with the base but risk alienating a lot of independents or moderate Republicans who don’t fundamentally want to vote for Trump.”

Moulton, based on his own statements, is apparently concerned about messaging and appearance. Moulton appears to want to explain Biden in a way that helps him appeal to the left and to more moderate Democrats. Congressman Moulton (MA-D) wants to see his party win. That hardly sounds like a supposed critic of his party’s leadership in the way that NPR reported him. It sounds more like Moulton is trying to craft messages that will appeal to the maximum number of people in a way that might influence elections.

Be that as it may, Moulton’s headline remarks ought to be interesting to wide swatches in or out of the Democratic party. The truth is this. For well over a century, the ultra-rich in this country have been working at figuring out ways to get more money and more power, despite of the Constitutional limitations that our Republic are supposed to provide the citizens with specific protections.  Warren Buffett and his late vice-chairman at Berkshire Hathaway, Charlie Munger, expressed that notion with respect to the 21st century. A look at the history of the so-called ‘progressive’ movement in the U.S., led by President Woodrow Wilson (D) reflects as much. Promise appealing sounding things, use public relations and the media to carry that message, and regardless of your actual intentions, package it as a benefit to everyday Americans rather than as a sly benefit to the wealthy who help put you into office.

 

 

While the video below about Democrat Woodrow Wilson is imperfect, it is generally accurate and largely supports the insights found in the more detailed report and analysis linked above. The video below includes several period video clips and photos.

 

 

That the wealthy have been trying to hijack the American Republic is not a secret. Centi-billionaire Warren Buffett called it class warfare. Buffett said his class is winning. Later, Buffett declared that his class has won. Danny Glover, who has reported served for some time in a Buffett nonprofit board, said over a dozen years ago: “It’s not only a monopoly of wealth; it’s a monopoly of information as well.” The union of wealth and information is what is creating the “Shadows of Liberty.” That groundbreaking documentary drama and its transcript ought to be must-reading and viewing for better grasping how manipulative corporate power, government, and media can be.

Most of those sources above are from the left and are often word-for-word as a leftist said it. For the context of Moulton’s interview, that is found linked here.

When carefully examined, each admits something similar.

The ultra-wealthy are using the lower class and various identity groups as tools to hold power and increase their personal wealth. The Democratic Party has been their primary tool for that effort for years, but that is not to say that several in the Republican ranks are used in a similar fashion too. Dan Bongino served in the Secret Service for some 12 years for then-Presidents Barack Obama (D) and George W. Bush (R). Bongino has run for Congress multiple times, often in blue districts, and has lost every time.  Now, he has a highly ranked podcast and one of the most popular talk radio shows in the U.S. during the coveted noon to 3 PM ET time slot long held by the late Rush Limbaugh. Per Bongino: ‘Republicans may not always be the solution to your problems, but Democrats are the cause of your problems.’ Also paraphrasing Bongino, he says that no Democrats are Republicans, but some Republicans may as well be Democrats.  This is part of the often devious and sometimes corrupt macro-environment that the manufactured housing industry is operating in. Some may enter a Congressional office worth less than a million dollars, and in a few short years, they are millionaires.

That’s not to say that every millionaire or billionaire is corrupt, nor that everyone that becomes so while in office does it through insider trading or other problematic practices. But it is true often enough where someone has to be willing to ‘follow the money trail‘ and see who is buying influence and for what purpose(s).

Things Are Not Always as They Appear to Be 

 

“Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me.” 

 

According to the Grammatist: “The saying, “Fool Me Once, Shame on You; Fool Me Twice, Shame on Me” was first used in 1650 by politician Anthony Weldon.”

According to Google’s AI: “President George W. Bush is famous for saying, “Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me. Fool me three times, shame on both of us”.”

It is common for people to get taken in or misled at one or more times during our lives. But hopefully, we get more sophisticated in learning to spot deception and those who deceive, and for what kinds of motivations. MHProNews has repeatedly referenced the evidence that Bush-Cheney (R) and company misled this nation and others too into war with Iraq. The John Pilger Documentary “Governments and Media roles in War Propaganda | THE WAR YOU DON’T SEE.” exposes something similar about how media helped create an illusion around Obama-Biden that continued and expanded overseas adventures using the U.S. military. Pilger opens with some history on how Wilson manipulated America into World War I. When war is desired by so-called “special (including corporate and political) interests,” stories and narratives are crafted in a way to sell it to the public. Why? Because the public is routinely against going to war. If there was a straight-up vote by the public on going to war, and the truth was being told to the public, the routine outcome would be, no thanks.

What does that have to do with affordable housing and manufactured housing? The relationship is more direct than some might initially think.  Just as the public has to be manipulated into conflicts, combat and wars of various types, so too the public has to be manipulated into accepting the dreadful for millions status quo on subjects such as housing. One of the tools for deception in MHVille will be briefly explored below, and are revealed in greater depth among several of the headline articles for this Sunday’s week in review.

MHProNews has periodically admitted for years that this writer initially took MHI’s stances at face value. We may have editorially disagreed with the execution of an MHI stance, but it was our (in hindsight, mistaken) impression that MHI leaders were sincerely mistaken. That was clearly naive. It was only after a series of tips, revelations from others involved at MHI, and from other sources in the industry that it began to become clear that MHI’s words often didn’t match up well with reality.  Poor execution also seemed to happen too often to be coincidental. That admission is not only part of what the Society for Professional Journalists code of ethical conduct suggests is necessary, but it is also perhaps how others who may currently be trapped in some web of deceptive MHI mischief, or in the purported machinations of an MHI insider operation, can gain the perspective necessary to break free from a deceptive trap too.

 

 

When some 65-70 percent of the country think that the system is rigged, it is important to explore how it is rigged, and how that rigged system can be exposed and tamed. Those insights then have to be applied to our profession.

 

In several devices the image below can be opened to a larger size.
In many cases you can click the image and follow the prompts.

 

Sometimes charming individuals or groups, who may be surrounded or accompanied by others who may seem credible, can say or do something that may superficially appear to make sense. Indeed, part of what they say may be demonstrably true.

But unfortunately, “Superficiality is the curse of the modern world,” as author and speaker Matthew Kelly stated. A quick, superficial impression can be an illusion, as Investopedia observed.

MHARR cautioned years ago about the Illusion of Motion that can project a wrong impression. That is what the con artist, or what a group of con artists are counting upon.

 

 

Those observations are useful to pulling back the veil on a range of subjects unpacked in this week in review.

Before plowing ahead, let’s mention that it is a good idea to check out the postscript for today. It is a brief follow up development to one of those headline topics.

With no further adieu, here are the headlines for the week that was, from 6.16 to 6.23.2024.

 

What’s New on MHLivingNews

 

 

 

 

 

What’s New from Washington, D.C. from MHARR

 

 

 

Select Items from Tim Connor, CSP, Words of Wisdom

 

 

 

 

What’s the Latest from the Masthead

 

 

 

 

 

What’s New on the Daily Business News on MHProNews

Saturday 6.22.2024

 

Friday 6.21.2024

 

Thursday 6.20.2024

 

Wednesday 6.19.2024

 

Tuesday 6.18.2024

 

Monday 6.17.2024

 

Sunday 6.16.2024

 

Postscript 

MHProNews does our own analysis on a range of issues. When a source is quoted, that source is identified, and credit for statements are appropriately provided. Sometimes our editorial positions are vindicated slowly, but sometimes they find swift support from credible sources.

On Friday, the Daily Business News featured a report on the debate for and against the notion that ‘the felon frontrunner’ and deposed prior President Donald J. Trump floated about eliminating the federal income tax. That deeper dive, pros- and against his notion, is linked here. Later that same day, Vince Coglianese featured as a guest on his WMAL radio show out of Washington, D.C. E.J. Antoni, Ph.D.

Dr. Antoni took a strong, and positive stance toward the Trump proposal. While he didn’t do so in the name of the respected Heritage Foundation, it would not be surprising if Antoni made sure that his support would be embraced by leadership there.

 

@profstonge nails it, as always:
Dump the income tax, go to tariffs, and shrink the federal gov’t – restore the gold standard while we’re at it to really drive a stake through the heart of leviathan: https://t.co/OTCCejouLT

— E.J. Antoni, Ph.D. (@RealEJAntoni) June 21, 2024

 

Also on the topic of taxation, Antoni posted this.

Article: https://t.co/sFsXSbXmjp

— E.J. Antoni, Ph.D. (@RealEJAntoni) June 22, 2024

 

Antoni brings these issues around to housing affordability, or more correctly, the lack of housing affordability in Bidenville.

“Arizona is one of the states where not a single major metropolitan area has affordable housing… How we got here is a lesson in failed public policy, and the situation won’t change until those failures are reversed…”
(Article linked in reply) pic.twitter.com/HJgWWuI633

— E.J. Antoni, Ph.D. (@RealEJAntoni) June 22, 2024

 

Turns out that if you don’t count prices that are inflating, then there’s no inflation… https://t.co/y5wTbTJyj7

— E.J. Antoni, Ph.D. (@RealEJAntoni) June 22, 2024

 

They’re not getting by – they’re drowning in debt… https://t.co/kIFUnO9rof

— E.J. Antoni, Ph.D. (@RealEJAntoni) June 21, 2024

 

Total permits for new housing units fell in May to lowest annualized rate since Jun ’20, when much of the economy was subject to gov’t-imposed lockdowns; this isn’t a crash (at least not yet), but it’s a bad omen… pic.twitter.com/SZtYDx19cm

— E.J. Antoni, Ph.D. (@RealEJAntoni) June 21, 2024

 

Housing starts declined in May and have settled below pre-pandemic annualized rates; given the forecasts for prices and interest rates, things look increasingly bleak for the industry; consumers simply can’t keep up w/ shelter cost growth: pic.twitter.com/odbOkMXrPZ

— E.J. Antoni, Ph.D. (@RealEJAntoni) June 21, 2024

Every phase of residential construction fell in May: permits were down, starts were down, completions were down – get ready for things to tumble further: pic.twitter.com/frJgioQOFZ

— E.J. Antoni, Ph.D. (@RealEJAntoni) June 21, 2024

 

Home prices aren’t being driven by people buying larger houses – young people can’t even afford small starter homes today; median price per sq ft just set a new record high of $212.09, up 49.2% in only 4 years: pic.twitter.com/tkf3ls6Htn

— E.J. Antoni, Ph.D. (@RealEJAntoni) June 20, 2024

Homebuilder sentiment tumbles again in Jun to 43, half of where it was at the start of ’21; record high input costs and the end of near-zero interest rates have proven too much for builders to maintain previous levels of supply: pic.twitter.com/uJhLdRoUfh

— E.J. Antoni, Ph.D. (@RealEJAntoni) June 19, 2024

 

Antoni doesn’t work for manufactured housing. But the data provided by Antoni posted above clearly has implications for our industry. Manufactured housing, as MHARR has often pointed out, ought to be producing several hundred thousand new homes annually. MHI has a staff and budgets multiple times the size of MHARR’s. MHI claims to represent “all segments” of the industry, both production and post-production, MHARR clearly states that they are an independent producer’s trade group. Meaning, these post-production topics ought to be MHI’s responsibility.  MHI collect dues and make claims based on their pitch. Along with collecting dues comes responsibilities. A source linked into the MHI orbit said MHI is guilty of association misbehavior. Several MHI members have, as MHProNews reported and are found in reports linked in the recap above, have made public statements that are embarrassing to the trade group. MHI declines offering a direct response to those concerns.

But MHI continues to churn out what is arguably its propaganda-style narrative.

In fairness to MHI, propaganda is not limited to manufactured housing. Politicians and businesses also use weaponized information tactics too.

To fix what’s gone wrong in the U.S., it helps to have a clear understanding of the root causes of issues. Genius Albert Einstein said if he had an hour to solve a problem, he’d spend 55 minutes looking at the causes of the problem. He’d only need 5 minutes for the solution.

 

Congress studied the affordable housing crisis and manufactured housing’s role in the solution for well over a year before enacting what became the Manufactured Housing Improvement Act of 2000 (a.k.a.: MHIA, 2000 Reform Law, 2000 Reform Act, etc.).  In an article linked above, Ed Hussey, J.D., for MHARR members said that the 2000 Reform Act is just fine, so long as it is routinely enforced. That is similar to what Kevin Clayton said for MHI, or John Bostick also said for MHARR.

 

 

It is similar to what Cavco’s Manny Santana said on behalf of MHI, or what Bill Boor (currently MHI chairman) told Congress more recently.

 

 

Per information made public by MHI and MHARR, Legacy Housing (LEGH) is a dual member. It has been observed that they have tended to stay out of association politics, focusing on their business ground game.  That noted, Legacy’s president and CEO, Duncan Bates said during an earnings call that the single biggest issue holding back manufactured housing is placement (i.e.: zoning related).

 

MHProNews recently reminded longtime readers, and informed new ones, about former MHI chairman Tim Williams (Berkshire Hathaway owned 21st Mortgage Corp, sister brand to Clayton Homes) about his remarks that manufactured housing is threatened by progressive movement and government.

This article began with quotes from Rep. Moulton on Democrats being the party of the ultra-rich and the ultra-poor (which may not be the best way to describe representing various identity and minority groups).

The wealthy, like centi-billionaires Warren Buffett and Bill Gates (the two are allies on several levels) are into moats and undermining markets and competitors when it suits their purposes. As each of those linked items makes clear, this isn’t a matter of speculation. Buffett, Gates, and Kevin Clayton have said in their own words (see the links in the previous sentence) what they are doing. If others ignore that evidence, too bad for those who ignore reality.

 

 

It may not be easy to face reality, but only by facing what is actually happening can the problems facing the U.S. and our industry be solved. Can one be solved without fixing the other? Perhaps. But it is at least useful to understand the big picture, and then see how manufactured housing fits in that big picture.

 

 

From inside the U.S., or beyond, there are professionals who have probed these issues. The system is rigged in favor of the insiders. The legal system that has apparently been weaponized against Donald Trump could potentially be used against the financial and political manipulators who are targeting him because he is a threat to their plans to transfer still more wealth away from the public and into their own hands.

Racist ‘progressive’ President Woodrow Wilson (D) conned the nation into policies that have led us to where we are today. Are Americans going to trust the arsonists to stop the fires? Sadly, some will.

But polling and other evidence is indicating that a shift – an awakening – appears to be underway.

It is entirely possible that more than enough will wake up before Election 2024 and show up to the polls to sweep away Biden (or whoever replaces him) and his backers so that the country can get back to the job of making individual lives better which is how life ideally becomes better as a whole.

Williams had a point. Over a century of progressive policies have revealed that their methods do not work as advertised. It is time to sweep them away.

Similarly, MHI in the Berkshire era has proven to be impressive at narratives and posturing that fails to produce the results they claim to seek. They too need to be swept away when hopefully a rule of law or law-and-order style group comes into office. See the linked reports above to learn more.

 

In several devices, the image below can be clicked and expanded to a larger size. 

 

Because Congressman Moulton (MA-D) also made a point: “we [Democrats] have become the party of the ultrarich and the ultra-poor.” By making posturing and paltering via promises, promises to minorities and various constituency groups (that they routinely do not deliver on), Democrats have slyly kept the money-making machine working for the ultra-rich that back them by using the votes of minority groups and others.

It is time for the con-games to be beaten at the ballot box, followed by appropriate legal actions taken by a new group that grasps that the system is rigged and that the rigged system must be cleaned up and fixed. ###

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Again, our thanks to free email subscribers and all readers like you, as well as our tipsters/sources, sponsors and God for making and keeping us the runaway number one source for authentic “News through the lens of manufactured homes and factory-built housing” © where “We Provide, You Decide.” © ## (Affordable housing, manufactured homes, reports, fact-checks, analysis, and commentary. Third-party images or content are provided under fair use guidelines for media.) See Related Reports, further below. Text/image boxes often are hot-linked to other reports that can be access by clicking on them.)

By L.A. “Tony” Kovach – for MHProNews.com.

Tony earned a journalism scholarship and earned numerous awards in history and in manufactured housing.

For example, he earned the prestigious Lottinville Award in history from the University of Oklahoma, where he studied history and business management. He’s a managing member and co-founder of LifeStyle Factory Homes, LLC, the parent company to MHProNews, and MHLivingNews.com.

This article reflects the LLC’s and/or the writer’s position and may or may not reflect the views of sponsors or supporters.

http://latonykovach.com

Connect on LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/latonykovach

 

 

Related References:

The text/image boxes below are linked to other reports, which can be accessed by clicking on them.’