Bernie Sanders fundraising off Trump: ‘He’s scared. And he should be’

Sen. Bernie SandersBernie SandersThe Hill’s 12:30 Report: Milley apologizes for church photo-op Harris grapples with defund the police movement amid veep talk Biden courts younger voters — who have been a weakness MORE (I-Vt.), who launched his 2020 presidential campaign this week, is fundraising off of attacks on him from President TrumpDonald John TrumpSenate advances public lands bill in late-night vote Warren, Democrats urge Trump to back down from veto threat over changing Confederate-named bases Esper orders ‘After Action Review’ of National Guard’s role in protests MORE’s team.

“Trump tweeted, emailed, and text-messaged his supporters—terrified of our Day 1 fundraising and sign-up numbers. He’s scared. And he should be,” Sanders tweeted Thursday morning, adding a link for people to send donations.

“The bad news is, we have a president who is a pathological liar, a fraud, a racist, a sexist, a xenophobe and someone who is undermining American democracy as he leads us in an authoritarian direction. The good news is, ours is the movement that will defeat him,” Sanders’s campaign added in an email to supporters that also echoed the tweet’s call for donations.

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The messages are just the latest salvo as Trump and Sanders begin aggressively campaigning off each other.

It started Tuesday morning, when the Sanders campaign announced it had raised $6 million — powered by small donations averaging $27, from donors in all 50 states — in the first 24 hours since its launch. The haul set a new record for first-day fundraising among 2020 contenders, beating Sen. Kamala HarrisKamala Devi HarrisRand Paul introduces bill to end no-knock warrants The Hill’s Campaign Report: Biden campaign goes on offensive against Facebook McEnany says Juneteenth is a very ‘meaningful’ day to Trump MORE’s (D-Calif.) total of $1.5 million.

The Trump campaign then sent a text and email to supporters Wednesday asking for donations, specifically citing Sanders’s announcement.

“Socialist Bernie Sanders raised $6 MILLION in 24 HOURS. Now I’m calling on you to CRUSH that number,” Trump’s campaign texted recipients, saying that any donation would be tripled. 

Sanders’s tweet and email Thursday morning were in direct response to Trump’s Wednesday messages.

Though Sanders this week entered a crowded Democratic primary pack that is already fielding a double-digit number of candidates, his star power from his insurgent 2016 campaign and fundraising prowess swiftly helped position him as one of the party’s front-runners.