Yes you can, you need to show the Thai embassy in the US though a plane ticket leaving the US going to Thailand for them to issue you the visa. (can be a refundable ticket, then just cancel it after your visa is issued).
Wise is limited to 2m baht per transfer, not 50k. My experience is it takes 4-6 weeks for approval, not 3 months. Print out the letter that your Thai elite is processing, you won't have issues reentering.