Two prominent conservatives have had their bank accounts with Wells Fargo shut down in the last 24 hours and each is raising the specter that the closures have to do with their politics, not their finances.
Lauren Witzke, a presenter for TruNews, a Christian broadcast network, and an America First activist who ran as a Republican for Senate in 2020, says that her account with Wells Fargo was shut down with no notice while traveling in Florida, according to National File.
Witzke’s home is in Delaware.
The account was zeroed out, with no ability to withdraw money from it, she says.
“Had I not been surrounded by friends in Florida, I would be completely stranded,” Witzke wrote.
She says she was told by bank officials that it was a “business decision.”
Shortly thereafter, former U.S. House candidate and current American Greatness contributor Pete D’Abrosca says he had his Wells Fargo savings account closed with no explanation, in a separate report from National File
“I’m sure it has *nothing* to do with my political opinions,” D’Abrosca tweeted sarcastically after the closure.
.@WellsFargo just closed my accounts with no explanation.
I’m sure it has *nothing* to do with my political opinions.
— Pete D’Abrosca (@pdabrosca) June 15, 2021
As to Witzke, Wells Fargo denied any political motivation in closing the TV presenter’s account.
“Wells Fargo does not consider political views or affiliations in making account decisions,” the bank said in an email. “An account may be closed for a number of reasons based on individual facts and circumstances. While we cannot discuss customer accounts because they involve confidential customer information, we can report that we have reviewed this situation, gave ample notice of our decision and it was handled appropriately.”
But D’Abrosca said it was just another example of big corporations trying to silence conservative opinion.
“Clearly there’s been some kind of conspiracy within Wells Fargo to ban prominent right wingers from using their banking services,” said D’Abrosca. “This is yet another reminder that major monopolies in both banking and tech are not operating within a purely free market capitalistic system.”
D’Abrosca said his other accounts at the bank were unaffected, but he plans legal action against Wells Fargo.
