Sen. Bernie Sanders Bernie SandersOutrage erupts over Breonna Taylor grand jury ruling Dimon: Wealth tax 'almost impossible to do' Grand jury charges no officers in Breonna Taylor death MORE’s (I-Vt.) presidential campaign sent out a fundraising request Tuesday citing a report from The New York Times that establishment Democrats are “agonizing” over momentum behind his bid for the Democratic nomination.

“Here comes the kitchen sink. According to the New York Times, the financial establishment of this country is gathering at ‘canapé-filled fund-raisers,’ plotting campaigns to stop us,” the email from Sanders campaign manager Faiz Shakir reads. “David Brock, who led a multi-million dollar smear campaign against us in 2016, is looking to lead the effort and hopes 'an anti-Sanders campaign' will start 'sooner rather than later.'”

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Brock, a liberal political consultant who was a frequent critic of Sanders during the 2016 Democratic primaries, told the Times that he had discussed efforts with other political operatives to thwart Sanders's campaign, adding that such efforts should commence “sooner rather than later.”

"There’s a growing realization that Sanders could end up winning this thing, or certainly that he stays in so long that he damages the actual winner," Brock told the Times.

Shakir announced in the email that Sanders's campaign would launch a 48-hour fundraising drive "to combat the potential anti-Sanders campaign."

“This is a serious threat to our campaign, and we need to treat it as such,” he wrote. "We have said from the start that we are taking on very powerful forces in this country — forces that profit mightily from protecting the status quo and the establishment thinking that gave rise to Trump. Ours is the campaign that will beat them.”

Sanders has consistently landed in the top spots of most polls,. A RealClearPolitics average of polling shows Sanders in second place behind former Vice President Joe Biden Joe BidenBiden on Trump's refusal to commit to peaceful transfer of power: 'What country are we in?' Democratic groups using Bloomberg money to launch M in Spanish language ads in Florida Harris faces pivotal moment with Supreme Court battle MORE, who has yet to announce a presidential campaign.

An Emerson poll released Monday found the Vermont senator leading the crowded Democratic field, followed by Biden and South Bend, Ind., Mayor Pete Buttigieg Pete ButtigiegThe Hill's Morning Report - Sponsored by Facebook - GOP closes ranks to fill SCOTUS vacancy by November Buttigieg stands in as Pence for Harris's debate practice Hillicon Valley: FBI, DHS warn that foreign hackers will likely spread disinformation around election results | Social media platforms put muscle into National Voter Registration Day | Trump to meet with Republican state officials on tech liability shield MORE.

Sanders also leads the pack in fundraising, raking in an eye-popping $18 million haul in the roughly six weeks that followed his campaign launch in mid-February.