2Way hosts Mark Halperin, Sean Spicer, and Dan Turrentine give their take on the “Wall Street Journal” story on banks that discriminate against conservative activists and conservative causes. In an interview on CNBC on Tuesday, President Donald Trump shared a story about being debanked at JPMorgan Chase, Bank of America, and other financial institutions. Halperin criticized Congressional Republicans for doing nothing about it. “Why didn’t they do more?” Halperin asked. “So the Wall Street Journal reports that the executive order would subject banks who violated an order banning discrimination against conservatives subject to monetary penalties, consent decrees or other disciplinary measures. And then later in the story, they say it could also be potentially referred to the Justice Department for criminal charges,” Halperin explained. “I would like to interview every executive producer and every executive editor, every major news organization and say, did you know about this story?” Halperin asked.

MARK HALPERIN: The president today told a story about his own debanking. This is one of the most undercovered stories of the last 10 years, and it’s undercover because the New York Times and the Washington Post doesn’t want to write stories that are sympathetic to Republicans and the Wall Street Journal. This is an incredible story of people who have been debanked across the conservative movement. And it’s not some small thing to be debanked. It’s not like, oh, OK, I can’t bank at Chase, I’ll bank at Bank of America. If you are debanked, you cannot bank anywhere. And even if you don’t run your own business, where, of course, you need a bank account, not having a bank account, credit cards, ATM, it’s Orwellian. And go look through the archives of the Washington Post, New York Times and Wall Street Journal. You will find next to no stories about this. So the president signed the executive order. And here he is telling his own story of being debanked. PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP: Well, they did discriminate. I had JPMorgan Chase. I had hundreds of millions of dollars in cash. I could see if they want to, you know, if they want to do something bad because you don’t have any money and you’re to forfeit. And they took people out. But I’ll give you me as an example. I had hundreds of millions. I had many, many accounts loaded up with cash. I was loaded up with cash. And they told me, I’m sorry, sir, we can’t have you. You have 20 days to get out. I said, you got to be kidding. I’ve been with you for 35, 40 years, they said. And I mean, I had all this. I didn’t know what to do with it. And I went to and you could ask him. Maybe he’s not going to admit it. So I said, you know, I was informed by my people that we have to get out of Chase. And that’s Jamie and JPMorgan Chase. So I said, I can’t believe it. Well, I was never in this situation before. I’ve never had anything like it. And it’s not like, gee, you defaulted on a loan. You know, geez, if I could understand that, that’s different. But there’s no default. I mean, it’s nothing but cash. It’s a really good. I have a really great company. MARK HALPERIN: So the Wall Street Journal reports that the executive order would subject banks who violated an order banning discrimination against conservatives subject to monetary penalties, consent decrees or other disciplinary measures. And then later in the story, they say it could also be potentially referred to the Justice Department for criminal charges. Dan, will this executive order, which as best I can tell from the journal description is not retroactive, will this be welcomed by the banking community or will they fight it? DAN TURRENTINE, 2WAY: I think they won’t fight it because they don’t want to pick a fight with Trump. Look, as you say, it’s been underreported. It’s the first time that I had heard him, that he spoke to Jamie Dimon. And he made it sound almost like Dimon called the Trump people, but that he didn’t do it. And then Trump went on to say he called Brian Moynihan. And Brian Moynihan said no as well, who’s the CEO of Bank of America. Look, as Trump said, it’s one thing if you go into default or you’ve engaged in some illicit financial activity where a bank would say, OK, you’re violating banking laws. I imagine this was after January 6th when he was unpopular and they just didn’t want to be associated with them, which is not OK, in my opinion. So I look forward to hearing more about it, but I don’t think the banking community will say a peep about it. MARK HALPERIN: Sean, this may sound like a rhetorical or plaintiff question, but how could this have happened in America? Don’t these banks have boards of directors that have some conservatives on them? SEAN SPICER, 2WAY: No. I mean, honestly, this is, to your point, beyond Trump, this is a big issue, especially in the Second Amendment area, where they have debanked organizations or anyone that has to do with firearms, Second Amendment, right to life issues. MARK HALPERIN: Also crypto, but not just those sectors. SEAN SPICER: Right. But I’m just saying that this has been going on, to your point, largely unnoticed. The bank that I’m on the board of, in full disclosure, Old Glory Bank, was literally, that was the nexus behind it, is to give a place where no matter your views, your money could be safe and grow. And it’s grown 245 percent in the past 12 months, 24 months, because people are basically like, I don’t want to have to worry about it. So it’s not just a cultural thing. The philosophy is you will never be debanked. But the idea that major corporate, I mean, to your point, no, these boards are complicit in this and no one’s speaking up for it. But you’re literally telling organizations and people, because of your political views, your money’s no good here. And to your point, it’s not as simple as, oh, well, then we’ll just go from Bank of America to Chase. They’re all in it together. DAN TURRENTINE: Yeah. And I think the other thing, too, is because it sounds like this happened to Trump after 2020. In my own experience, in my previous career, I can’t tell you how much board of directors lost their minds the summer of 2020, after George Floyd and everything else. The pressure on companies to start making statements, because I had many meetings, many phone calls advising not to do this, because once you open the door to one person’s politics, you expose yourself to the pendulum swing and then you’re caught kind of trying to ping pong and satisfy who’s ever in power. But boards of directors were considered wading into or out of, in this instance, so many things that historically companies would never have touched, ever. MARK HALPERIN: 100%. SEAN SPICER: Yeah, go ahead. I was going to say, to your question, though, part of the reason that they don’t cover it, and I’m not trying to be hyperbolic, is because they agree. I mean, the New York Times is good. And the Washington Post, so it’s not a story then, because the reporter says, yeah, you don’t deserve. I mean, most of these people agree with the leftist tactics. MARK HALPERIN: But I want to know, where were the Republican members of Congress? Why didn’t they do more? DAN TURRENTINE: Oh, because they were being pummeled about January 6th. So one of the big movements in corporate America was, cut off all PAC money to any Republican. MARK HALPERIN: But this isn’t just about January 6th. DAN TURRENTINE: Well, Mark, but it all became this stew of George Floyd, social injustice, Charlottesville. MARK HALPERIN: You’re right about the context, Dan. I’m just saying the silence on the part of people who were affected and people who should have advocated for them. It’s un-American, what happened. SEAN SPICER: Well, but the problem was that, first of all, I agree with you, Mark, on the sense of, where were Republican members of Congress speaking up and saying this? But to Dan’s point, they were getting squeezed by saying, you know, hey, we’re going to cut off this. They weren’t in the majority. And you watch these guys, and this is where I have a problem with my own party, where all of these guys are not coming back and like, oh, I’m really sorry we screwed you, Mark Zuckerberg, et cetera. And I get it. They’re playing a game. Smart on them. And that’s their job, is to look out for their companies. But our job on the right is to hold them accountable and to say, no, no, no, no, no. You don’t get back with a million dollar contribution to the inaugural. MARK HALPERIN: I would like to interview every executive producer and every executive editor, every major news organization and say, did you know about this story? DAN TURRENTINE: Did you even know about it? Yeah. And I can just say, Sean, Republicans did. So I want to be careful here. I advised what I advised. The entity did not end up doing what a lot of Democrats wanted. I got a phone call from a Republican saying, if you go ahead with what Democrats are saying, we will never forget that we’re keeping score. Now, I knew that already, so they didn’t have to call me, but I always appreciated being called. But both sides were threatening. You have to do this because this is outrageous. If you do this, it’s insanity and we’ll never forget. So Republicans were quietly under the radar. They were threatening. SEAN SPICER: But back in the day, if Tom DeLay was still in Congress, we would have a list and say, you’re not dealing with these guys again. And to me, the idea that JPMorgan and Bank of America got away with this and they’re not paying a bigger price is bad on Republicans. Republicans need to hold them accountable and say, OK, you guys had it your way, but you know what now? We’re going to hold you accountable. And it is shameful that Republicans are not holding them more accountable. And look, to Mark’s point, this was a big issue with the Second Amendment and pro-life communities for a long time before it reached a boiling point. And so I just hope that this is the last. MARK HALPERIN: It’s also part of why the multibillion dollar crypto industry is now totally a wholly owned subsidiary of the Republican Party. DAN TURRENTINE: Well, it’s also why, like I keep saying, I don’t feel like this is the end of democracy, what Trump is doing. Democrats did the same things. We just did it in a different way. And most people’s sensibilities in the media agreed with it.

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