December 01, 2015 03:15 PM UTC

Guess How Much Money Trump Has Spent on TV Ads? (HINT: Not Much)

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• by: Colorado Pols

There’s plenty of stories to discuss about the terrorist attack on the Planned Parenthood clinic in Colorado Springs, from weird reactions by GOP politicians to accountability demands by Progressive activists.

Frankly, we need a break from these stories, so here’s something about a famous rich guy leading the Republican field for President.

Our friends at “The Fix” point out one of the more amazing pieces of information about Donald Trump’s campaign for President:

Donald Trump has spent less than one percent as much money as Jeb Bush on television ads so far in the 2016 election, according to calculations made by NBC News, even as the real estate mogul continues to lap the former Florida governor in both key early state and national polls.

Jeb and his aligned Right to Rise super PAC have dropped $28.9 million to Trump’s $217,000.  That spending chasm is almost the inverse of where each man stands in the race — with Trump alone at the top and Jeb mired in the murky middle…

…That Jeb has spent nearly $30 million on ads trying to move his numbers in Iowa, New Hampshire and South Carolina and watched as those numbers either stayed where they were or, in some cases, dropped is absolutely eye-popping. It’s also yet another data point that suggests Jeb’s massive fundraising edge may mean far less than we at first assumed due, in large part, to the fact that Republican voters are just not buying what he is selling.

But, I actually think the fact that Trump has spent just over $200,000 on paid media is even more amazing — and speaks to Trump’s true political gift: Getting lots and lots of free publicity.

There are a lot of different angles to approach this story, which makes it difficult to determine if there will be any lasting impact or lessons learned.

You could argue, for example, that it is a good thing that Jeb! Bush doesn’t appear to be able to buy his way into the top of the GOP field for President. But is this the beginning of a real change in Presidential politics, or is it just another indicator that nobody likes Jeb!?

You could also argue that it is encouraging that a candidate — even Donald Trump — can reach potential voters without having to rely on massive spending on television ads. The other side of that argument, of course, is that Trump has had little trouble getting coverage for the kind of absurd claims and statements that might otherwise be relegated to a 30 second campaign spot. Are we witnessing a new era of politicians doing and saying anything because they know the media will cover it one way or the other?

What say you, Polsters? Is it a net positive that someone can lead the GOP field for President without saturating the airwaves? Or is it a net negative that you can say (apparently) anything you want and still get gobs of free media coverage?