Bush Settles on FHA Nominee

President Bush intends to nominate Brian D. Montgomery to be the next commissioner of the Federal Housing Administration, according to the White House.Mr. Montgomery currently serves as deputy assistant to the president. He served as director of advance for the Bush-Cheney 2000 presidential campaign, and was communications director for the Texas Department of Housing and Community Affairs (1995-1999) under then-Gov. George Bush. If confirmed by the Senate, Mr. Montgomery would become an assistant secretary of the Department of Housing and Urban Development and replace FHA Commissioner John Weicher, who is expected to step down by the end of April. Now that Mr. Montgomery is taking the FHA post, industry officials expect the White House to focus on filling the top slot at Ginnie Mae, which has been vacant since mid-December.