Bank of America Crunches Local Man’s Credit, Says Nightline Story

A programming note: Nightline tonight will feature the story of a local man, Tommy Newsom, whose credit card company suddenly — and inexplicably — jacked up the interest rate on his Bank of America-issued credit card, from 14 to 28 percent. That $40 to $50 extra a month makes a big difference, especially for someone described as “the sole breadwinner for his wife and grandson, having worked 47 years at the same private electricity company outside Dallas,” who has had to use the card to pay for five medical procedures for family members over the last two years. Says Newsom, when he called BoA for answers, “Essentially, what they finally told me was the rules allow them to do it, so they were going to. Period.” –Robert Wilonsky

Update: The video from last night’s broadcast can be found here.