* Thrift regulator: argument to save OTS winning support

* Reform bills would scrap OTS, streamline bank regulation

* Bowman says OTS not preparing for merger, looks to hire

By Karey Wutkowski

WASHINGTON, Nov 25 (Reuters) - The head of the beleaguered U.S. Office of Thrift Supervision, which is slated to be abolished in a financial regulation overhaul, says his effort to save the 20-year-old OTS is gaining traction.

"If you had listened to some of the horrible things that people were saying about us at the start of the discussion, we were entirely to blame for the financial crisis we're in now," John Bowman, acting OTS director, told reporters at a quarterly briefing on Tuesday. "I think we've made great headway."

The Obama administration, the House of Representatives and the Senate have all proposed to essentially scrap the OTS, which regulates savings and loan institutions.

For some lawmakers, the OTS is a poster child of lax regulation. In the bubble years before 2008's financial meltdown, critics say, financial firms shopping for the most flexible regulator sometimes found a home at the OTS.

For instance, troubled insurer American International Group (AIG.N: Quote, Profile, Research), bailed out last year with pledges of up to $180 billion of taxpayer aid, chose the OTS as its primary regulator, despite the agency's lack of experience in policing large corporations.