Dodd calls for ban on Chinese imports

Chris Dodd is the latest Democratic presidential hopeful to bash the Bush administration over the lengthening list of recalls of products made in China.

The Connecticut senator referenced Mattel's global recall of 848,000 drum sets, Barbie accessories, and other toys -- the toy giant's third because of dangerous levels of lead paint. Democrats in Congress have been calling for beefing up the Consumer Product Safety Commission's staffing and authority to stop the importation of dangerous products.

Dodd goes further, calling on Bush "to immediately suspend imports of all food and toys from China."

"This latest report is just the latest in a weeks-long string -- how many more American children are going to be put at risk while the President sits by idly?" Dodd asked in a statement released by his campaign. "This lax stance on China is one example of how President Bush's policies have made our nation far less secure and our children and families far less safe than they were six years ago. His inaction is simply unacceptable."

John Edwards also weighed in, issuing a statement that the federal government can no longer rely on voluntary recalls by companies and must act on its own.

"Rather than wait for a broken Washington system to act, the president must end his silence, stand up, and lead. President Bush must order Consumer Product Safety Commission inspectors to Mattel's warehouses and collect samples of its full product lines and test each and every one of them for lead paint," he said in the statement. "If necessary, the president should call on testing resources from the FDA and other agencies to manage this crisis that is threatening the very health of our children."