My bad -- I missed this last week and didn't even realize there was a saga.
The Daily Show covered it last week -- and it was stupid, sure, but it seemed like such easy pickens, I didn't bother.

Now I suppose I'll have to go dig up the tape... Let me know if you care. (I'm still crowd estimating and state of the unioning and things...)

All this article tells me is that they've found a scapegoat for this latest gaffe of pure shrubbery.

This one's so easy there's no fun in it, so I'm going to rush to the Shrub's defense: "It's not his fault! How was the Shrub to know that those pieces of tape covering up the area where "Made In _____" always goes was something other than "Made In America" -- and that the powers that be hadn't simply chosen to cover up the "Made In America's" for some complex reason? Who knows why "they" do the things the way they do. This man is the "President" of the United States? Is he supposed to start paying attention to his surroundings at every single press conference? Should he be expected to single-handedly ensure that there are no contradictions between his speech and his props?"

I guess you're right. He's got more important things on his mind. (Like remembering to take the medication that causes his pupils to be so dialated...)
President Bush spoke behind a stack of boxes with tape over the words "Made in China."

Remember "Boxgate," the incident last week at a St. Louis warehouse in which President Bush touted small business and things made in America? And the problem was, he was standing behind a bunch of boxes that had tape over the words "Made in China"?

Seems the person who did this, said by the White House to be an "overzealous volunteer," may have committed a federal offense.

Covering up the "Made In" labels is against the law, a violation of venerable Title 19, Chapter 4, Subtitle II, Part 1, Sec. 134.11, which "requires that every article of foreign origin (or its container) imported into the United States shall be marked in a conspicuous place as legibly, indelibly and permanently" as possible, "in such manner as to indicate to an ultimate purchaser . . . [the] name of the country of origin of the article."

Here is the full text of the entire article in case the link goes bad:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A57958-2003Jan28.html

Quick, Form the Box Office

President Bush spoke behind a stack of boxes with tape over the words "Made in China." (Rick Bowmer -- AP)

By Al Kamen
Wednesday, January 29, 2003; Page A19

Remember "Boxgate," the incident last week at a St. Louis warehouse in which President Bush touted small business and things made in America? And the problem was, he was standing behind a bunch of boxes that had tape over the words "Made in China"?

Seems the person who did this, said by the White House to be an "overzealous volunteer," may have committed a federal offense.

Covering up the "Made In" labels is against the law, a violation of venerable Title 19, Chapter 4, Subtitle II, Part 1, Sec. 134.11, which "requires that every article of foreign origin (or its container) imported into the United States shall be marked in a conspicuous place as legibly, indelibly and permanently" as possible, "in such manner as to indicate to an ultimate purchaser . . . [the] name of the country of origin of the article."

Further, "any person who, with intent to conceal the information . . . defaces, destroys, removes, alters, covers, obscures, or obliterates any mark required under the provisions of this chapter shall -- (1) upon conviction for the first violation . . . be fined not more than $100,000 or imprisoned for not more than one year, or both. . . ." A year in the slammer?

This is enforced by Customs, now part of the Department of Homeland Security. Might be a good place for Secretary Tom Ridge to start. Or wait! Is Ken Starr busy? Didn't Watergate begin with some tape on a door?