Election 2016: Bernie Sanders To Raise Funds For DNC, Attacks Hillary Clinton And Tries To Appeal To A Mainstream Audience

Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., is cozying up to the Democratic Party and has signed a joint fundraising deal with its committee, according to Politico. That means Sanders will be able to raise as much as $33,400 for the committee during his events, while also grabbing checks for as much as $2,700 to add to his presidential campaign.

Sanders, an independent who caucuses with Democrats in the Senate, has been trying to show that he is closer to the party than is generally assumed. He recently allowed his name to be used on a fundraising letter sent out by the Democratic National Committee. Sanders is known for small-dollar fundraisers that amount to less than $200 per donor, and he has very rarely held big money fundraisers that would meet those fundraising limits.

The Vermont senator has been trying to broaden his campaign’s appeal beyond his current niche lately. After an unexpected rise to formidability in the Democratic primary over the last few months, his campaign is shifting into targeted messages to appeal to specific demographics that he is speaking to, according to the Boston Globe. He is also ramping up the attacks on his No. 1 competitor, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.

“I probably can and will do better in drawing a contrast,” Sanders said Thursday morning on NPR’s "Morning Edition" after conceding that he is trailing Clinton in polls around the country. “There are significant differences of opinion between Hillary Clinton and myself.”

During the interview, he said he was glad that Clinton had come out against the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade deal, but that he has a clear record of opposing those sorts of agreements whereas Clinton does not. Sanders also took a shot at Clinton for taking a long time to decide her position on the Keystone XL pipeline.

“How can you be serious about saying you want to combat climate change and [still] have doubts about whether you want to support the Keystone pipeline or not?" Sanders said. "The Keystone pipeline is transporting and excavating some of the dirtiest fossil fuel on Earth. I was against it from day one."

Sanders trails Clinton by 22.3 points in an average of national polls put together by Real Clear Politics. He receives 32.5 percent of the total vote compared to Clinton’s 54.8 percent. While Clinton has opened up a nearly 30 point lead in the first-in-the-nation caucus state of Iowa, Sanders is still battling it out with her in New Hampshire. Sanders is currently beating Clinton by 1 percent there in averages of polls. New Hampshire is notable for being the site of Clinton’s redemption in 2008, after a devastating and unexpected loss to then-Sen. Barack Obama days earlier in Iowa.