Liberals have a plan.  They want politics to be funded only by small contributions.  And only the conveniently non-quantifiable labor contribution of big unions.  And just one more thing – the nonstop, 24/7 positive press for Democrats and negative press for Republicans from the liberal media.  But nothing else.  They cry and moan when conservative businessmen fund Republican candidates.  It's not fair!

Well, Donald Trump has turned conventional wisdom on its head and shown that, for the moment, money is practically irrelevant in presidential politics.  Do you know who has run the most campaign spots so far?  You'll never guess.

Rick Perry!

Perry ran close to 3,500 ads.  Meanwhile, Jeb Bush's Right to Rise PAC has run well over 3,000 ads, to little effect.  Bobby Jindal, at about 1% in the polls, has run close to 2,000 ads.

And Donald Trump, who has run zero ads, is on the top of the polls.  And so is Ben Carson, who has raised a lot of money but hasn't spent any on ads so far.

What is their secret?  It's not all about the hair.  It's about saying things that other politicians are afraid to say and grabbing national attention for free.  For Donald Trump, it was saying the formerly unsayable about illegal aliens.  Remember when Mitt Romney was so cowed by the media that he was afraid to merely say that illegals should "self-deport"?  Look how far Trump has pushed the bar, calling for actual deportations of illegals.  The media opened fire on him, but unlike every other Republican, who buckled down and back-pedaled, Trump stood his ground and gained in the polls.

Each time he says something the media think is controversial, they give him a lot of free press, thinking he will destroy himself, but the free press only makes him stronger.  For Trump, it was the truth about illegals.  For Ben Carson, it was the truth about Muslims and their lack of integration in the United States.

These are the only two candidates in double digits in the polls and they didn't need any money to get there.

Now, that isn't to say that money is unnecessary in a campaign.  Money (and organization) certainly will help in caucus states, and it will certainly be necessary in the general election.  But Trump, and to a lesser extend Carson, have shown that money isn't necessary to be a top contending candidate.

Exit question: Do you think liberals look at Trump's example and are pleased that politics is progressing without "big money"?

This article was written by Ed Straker, senior writer of NewsMachete.com, the conservative news site.