Number of friends Ken Lewis has won by blaming Ben Bernanke and Hank Paulson for dropping the cone of silence over the Bank of America/Merrill Lynch deal: approximately zero. On the contrary, he’s actually given a ton of cannon fodder to one of his most vocal opponents. Jonathan Finger, who not only has already sued BAC over this deal but has also been organizing a group to push for Lewis’ ouster at the next shareholder meeting (see our earlier post about Finger), is now super double unimpressed:

“Seems like Ken Lewis has changed his story. Previously Mr. Lewis has stated unambiguously that Bank of America was not aware of the losses at Merrill Lynch until after the Dec. 5 shareholder vote. Now he states differently. I think this will certainly strengthen our lawsuit,” Jonathan Finger of Finger Interests Number One Ltd. told Dealscape.

Both Finger and CtW Investment Group along with Proxy Governance, are lobbying fellow shareholders to oust CEO Ken Lewis, lead director O. Temple Sloan and Governance Committee chair Thomas Ryan at the bank’s April 29 annual meeting. The proxy has since been supported by RiskMetrics Group, Glass, Lewis & Co.  and Connecticut State Treasurer Denise L. Nappier.

It’s been a while. I think it is high time for a LOLFed RAMPANT SPECULATION poll. How much longer will Kennay be livin’ the lie?  -

Also, here’s The Deal’s recent interview with Finger. He wants… a board that acts in shareholder interests? That’s up there with unicorns and a pot of gold, sir: