Ken Lewis must be smiling after gaining some public support from an unlikely source: Bank analyst Meredith Whitney. Bloomberg reports that Whitney told reporters at a conference that Lewis "has done a great job" except for the Merrill Lynch purchase, which was his "one major mistake acquisition." Which of course was a big one. In fairness, most people would add Countrywide to the list of Lewis mistakes.

In any case, the support comes at a time when a lot of shareholders are clamoring for his head. Whitney has certainly been tough on the sector. It would be easy to get cynical about why she would offer public support. She has started a new research firm, and let's face it, access is everything. I'm quite sure she would have no troubled getting him on the phone. But frankly, she was probably doing that even before. Maybe she truly does believe he's done a great job. Most would agree that she's an insightful analyst. 

For more:
- here's the Bloomberg article

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