Obama: "Ban all Toys from China"!

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Obama: "Ban all Toys from China"!

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uploaded by Barry ORegan

Mr. Obama's banning all toys from China will prop up a dying US toy manufacturing industry, 

http://network.nationalpost.com/np/blogs/posted/archive/2007/12/19/stop-the-import-of-all-toys-from-china-obama.aspx

Reuters is reporting that presidential hopeful Barack Obama is calling for an outright ban on toys from China in the wake of several toy recalls and scandals over items with high-lead content, or made with other toxic materials. Meanwhile, this week Prime Minister Stephen Harper looked like the soul of moderation in calling for tougher regulations, eschewing the easy path of China bashing. That's just the Canadian way. Obama said on Wednesday he would ban all toys made in China after a series of safety scares, and he called for tougher U.S. inspections of Chinese imports. “I would stop the import of all toys from China. Now, I have to say that that’s about 80% of toys that are being imported right now,” the Illinois senator told voters in New Hampshire, which helps kick off the 2008 White House race. “We have the power right now to set up our own inspection systems in China,” said Obama, who is in a tight race with Democratic front-runner Sen. Hillary Clinton of New York according to polls. “The Japanese do this on food, they basically say to China, you cannot import food unless you meet our safety inspectors. They sent Japanese inspectors to China, set up the testing system, and oversee and make sure that every single bite of food that is sent into from China has been tested,” he said. “We don’t do that,” Obama added at a campaign stop in Concord, capital of New Hampshire, whose Jan. 8 primary vote is the second of the state-by-state battles to pick Democratic and Republican candidates for the election on Nov. 4, 2008. A watchdog group, Public Citizen, said in a report on Wednesday that more than 87% of U.S. toys are imported, a dramatic shift from the 1970s when almost 90 percent of them were produced domestically. Also, If you're a massive U.S. election buff, you should check out this blog from our sister publication, The New Republic. Its ecumenical in the sense that they cover both Republican and Democrat races, but it's full of pith and smarts.