Sheila Bair is emerging as one tough regulator who's not afraid to speak her mind, if only more people would listen to her. While some regulators face suggestions that they are too cozy with the industry, she has spoken up about the shortcomings of several executives, notable Citi (C) CEO Vikram Pandit. It has also surfaced that she opposed Bank of America's (BAC) efforts to repay TARP; she didn't think the bank had suitably recovered. God forbid that she's right.

The New York Times weighs in with a column that takes a skeptical look at Bank of America's motivation: To get in a better position to hire a CEO. So you can argue it both ways. It's tempting to say the bank either has recovered enough or it hasn't, but there is grey area. In any case, the really aggressive drive to pay back TARP didn't really get underway until the board realized it couldn't hire a CEO. By the way, the board is meeting in Charlotte. My guess is that it will not announce a CEO. 

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