Gibson Guitar/DOJ Update: Political Hatchet Job?

With this administration, you bet. More reports are surfacing that the Department of Justice; you know, the one that let the Black Panthers go even after they had a conviction, the same department that refuses to go after crimes committed against whites as hate crimes, the same one that has botched Operation Fast and Furious, the same one that has been used to go after Obama's enemies; was sicced on Gibson Guitar because the CEO donates to Republicans and the competition donates to Democrats. From Landmark Report:

It’s worth pointing out that Henry E. Juszkiewicz, Gibson’s Chief Executive Officer, is a donor to a couple of Republican politicians. According to the Open Secrets database, Juszkiewicz donated $2000 to Rep. Marsha Blackburn (R-TN07) last year, as well as $1500 to Sen. Lamar Alexander (R-TN). Juszkiewicz also has donated $10,000 to the Consumer Electronics Association, a PAC that contributed $92.5k to Republican candidates last year, as opposed to $72k to Democrats. (The CEA did, however, contribute more to Democrats in the 2008 election cycle.)

When warrants as ridiculous such as these are issued and executed, there appears no other reason than because the company or individual at hand is being targeted, not because there is any sort of wrongdoing. As a company, Gibson is a legendary. They’ve done nothing wrong, except, apparently, deigning to have a Republican CEO.

The plot thickens, however.

One of Gibson’s leading competitors is C.F. Martin & Company. The C.E.O., Chris Martin IV, is a long-time Democratic supporter, with $35,400 in contributions to Democratic candidates and the DNC over the past couple of election cycles. According to C.F. Martin’s catalog, several of their guitars contain “East Indian Rosewood.” In case you were wondering, that is the exact same wood in at least ten of Gibson’s guitars.

The Gibson facility wasn’t raided over allegations of tax evasion, charges of embezzlement, or even something as drab as child labor. Not even close. It was raided over what the DOJ deems an inability to follow a vague domestic trade law in India (one that apparently the Indian government didn’t seem too concerned about enforcing) regarding a specific type of wood. Not illegal wood, just wood with obscenely specific procedural guidelines.

So, Obama is trying to clear the field, perhaps, for Martin? See, how this would have worked if Gibson played ball is: Gibson does as the DOJ suggests and they move their facilities to get foreign labor. Then, Obama scorns them as an outsourcer and heaps praise on Martin for not being a "profiteer" and sending jobs overseas, even while Team Obama is the group that facilitated and forced the outsourcing.

This Administration is one of the most corrupt ever, on a par with the worst of Nixon's Plumbing.