John Edwards says the Consumer Product Safety Commission has failed to protect the public from dangerous products, and he wants the acting head of the commission to resign.

The former North Carolina senator made the appeal yesterday at a middle school in New Hampshire as he continues his quest for the Democratic presidential nomination. He said he wrote to President Bush demanding the resignation of Nancy Nord.

Edwards also introduced his own plan to reform regulation of food, drugs and consumer products. In part, it calls for banning lead in all children's products and putting U.S. inspectors permanently in countries that have significant imports to the United States, beginning with China and India.