Obama vice presidential search chief quits

CHICAGO (Reuters) - Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama on Wednesday said the head of his vice presidential search team and former head of the mortgage giant Fannie Mae had decided to step aside.

Obama said in a statement that Jim Johnson had decided to quit the unpaid position in order to avoid distracting from the process of gathering information about possible vice presidential candidates.

Obama appointed Johnson last week to a three-member team heading the search for his running mate, but Johnson became embroiled in a controversy over questionable loans from lender Countrywide Financial.

(Reporting by Steve Holland)