Trump, GOP agree to raise funds together

Donald Trump’s campaign has agreed to a fundraising deal with the Republican National Committee (RNC) as the two sides continue to seek party unity ahead of a tough general election fight.  

The deal, referred to as a joint fundraising agreement, will allow Trump and the party to hold events together and split the proceeds. Both Trump and RNC Chairman Reince Priebus trumpeted the deal in a statement Tuesday night.

“The RNC is excited to team up with the Trump campaign to expand the robust ground, data, and digital operation we have in place to elect Republicans up and down the ballot,” Priebus said.

{mosads}“Donald Trump knows the importance of keeping our Republican majorities at the local, state, and national level and these joint fundraising agreements are another vital step in making that happen.”

The agreement creates two committees: one to raise money for the RNC, Trump’s campaign and 11 state parties; and another for just the RNC and the Trump campaign. 

The group also assigned RNC Finance Chairman Lew Eisenberg to oversee the efforts, the latest step by the party to embrace its presumptive nominee. 

Now, donors can write just one check to a joint fundraising committee maxing out at $449,400, with the first $2,700 going to the Trump campaign and the remaining money split up among national and local parties. 

Trump has rushed to ramp up his fundraising apparatus after running a primary campaign that relied primarily on his own money. Political observers, however, expect the general campaign to cost about $1 billion.

But while the agreement is an important step to help Trump have the financial resources to take on Democratic front-runner Hillary Clinton, the close financial dealing with the party could undercut his previous assertions of independence because he doesn’t have to rely on deep-pocketed donors. 

Clinton has been actively fundraising under a similar agreement with the Democratic Party. But that’s prompted criticism from Democratic primary rival Bernie Sanders that the campaign is keeping more money for itself instead of sending it to local campaigns.