WASHINGTON US National Intelligence Director Dennis Blair said Thursday he will resign the post amid reports President Barack Obama had demanded his resignation, a move seen as a bid to bolster CIAs role among the several intelligence outfits operating in the United States. The director of national intelligence is responsible for coordinating the work of 16 US intelligence agencies. ABC News reported the President has been interviewing possible successors for weeks, unhappy with US intelligence operations under Blair - including episodes such as the Fort Hood, Texas, massacre, the failed Christmas Day attempt to bomb a passenger jet and the failed attempt to detonate a car bomb in New Yorks Times Square. It is with deep regret that I informed the President today that I will step down as Director of National Intelligence effective Friday, May 28, ABC reported Blair said in a statement. The White House did not announce Thursday who would succeed Blair, but The New York Times, citing an unnamed senior administration official, said the likely candidate was James Clapper, a retired Air Force lieutenant general and the Pentagons top intelligence official. Blairs replacement will be the fourth intelligence director in five years. The departure of Blair, a retired admiral, had been rumoured for months, but was made official when President Obama called him Thursday and asked him to step down. The administration has largely embraced the CIA operations, especially the agencys campaign to kill militants in Pakistans tribal areas with drone aircraft, The Times said. Citing a source it did not identify, ABC said the major reason for Blairs departure was that the White House and national security staff were dissatisfied with the manner in which the intelligence agencies shared intelligence. In a statement issued by the White House Obama said Blair, a 63-year-old retired four-star admiral, has a remarkable record of service to the United States, and I am grateful for his leadership as director of National Intelligence.