“Another day, another recall. This is getting ridiculous – how many red flags do we need before we take serious action to keep American consumers safe from tainted Chinese-manufactured products? Parents and children should never be left playing ‘toy box roulette,’ but sadly, that’s the position they are in today. And the agency that is supposed to protect American consumers has failed to do so.

“These failures are not the result of poor performance by CPSC’s dedicated employees – they are diligent and hardworking. But the Bush administration has starved the agency of the funding, staff and technology it needs to perform its important work, putting the agency in an impossible situation. Last week’s congressional hearings on lead-tainted toys should be just the beginning of efforts to provide the Commission with the authority and additional resources it needs to protect American consumers,” Rep. Markey added.

Last week Rep. Markey questioned the acting chairman of the CPSC, Nancy Nord, about the government’s efforts to protect children from lead-tainted imports. A video clip of their back-and-forth can be viewed here.