Obama said to ask Bair to stay

President-elect Barack Obama intends to retain Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. Chairman Sheila C. Bair in her post, Democratic Party officials told The Wall Street Journal. Ms. Bair, a Republican, was appointed to run the FDIC by President Bush in 2006 and was praised for her efforts to help homeowners avoid foreclosure. In one such move, she criticized the Bush administration's management of the $700 billion rescue package because, she said, it doesn't do enough to keep people in their homes. Last month, there was speculation that Timothy Geithner, Mr. Obama's selection for Treasury secretary, was seeking to have Ms. Bair replaced with an appointment by the administration. While her term as FDIC chairman expires in 2011, she has said that she would step down if the Obama administration asked her to. "Given the current environment, my focus remains on the important work of the FDIC to protect depositors and maintain confidence and stability in the financial system," Ms. Bair said in a statement. "This work will be my first priority as long as I am chairman of the FDIC." Last year, the FDIC took control of 25 failed banks, including Washington Mutual Inc. of Seattle.