Could Donald Trump be the first person in the history of the world to make government operate under budget?

During a press conference en route to a rally in Council Bluffs, Iowa Tuesday night, Trump revealed that his campaign has spent significantly less than he had anticipated for advertising.

“You’ve got to understand I’m $35 million under budget,” Trump said aboard his plane while discussing ad buys. “I thought as of January 1st, I would have spent $35 million. I’ve spent nothing.

“When I build, I like to build under budget. When we fix the infrastructure of our country, I want that to be under budget — it’s going to come in under budget because we have people that don’t know what they’re doing. So we’re going to fix the infrastructure and it’s going to be done at a reasonable cost, not a cost where they have 25 times overruns,” he said.

“I’ve very proud of the fact that I’ve spent the least and have the biggest result,” Trump said. “That’s what the country needs. That’s the kind of attitude and thought process that the country needs.”

Trump said he will soon begin spending “a minimum” of $2 million a week on ads in Iowa, New Hampshire and South Carolina. He told reporters the ads will focus on the border, trade and ISIS.

When it was pointed out that Jeb Bush “has spent $40 million,” Trump responded, “he hasn’t spent $40 million, he has wasted $40 million.”

MSNBC reported in mid-December that Trump has spent the fewest dollars of any candidate in the race on either side.

But in this current election cycle, Bush’s Super PAC, Right to Rise, is the No. 1 spender, having aired $37 million in TV ads, while the campaign has chipped in an additional $1 million.

Put it another way: Bush and his allies have spent more in ad money so far in the 2016 presidential race ($38 million) than all of the ad money at this point in the 2012 cycle ($35 million).

Team Bush’s $38 million is followed by Marco Rubio and his allies ($17.8 million), Team Hillary Clinton ($12.2 million) and Team John Kasich ($9.1 million).

The smallest advertiser? Donald Trump – at $217,000.

Top ad spenders in the 2016 race – so far

* Team Bush: $38.1 million ($37M from Right to Rise Super PAC, $1.1 million from campaign)

* Team Rubio: $17.8 million ($8.8M from 501c4, $6M from campaign, $3M from Super PAC)

* Team Clinton: $12.2 million ($12M from campaign, $200K from Super PAC)

* Team Kasich: $9.1 million (all from two outside groups)

* Team Christie: $8.1 million ($7.7M from Super PAC, $400K from campaign)

* Team Sanders: $7.6 million (all from campaign)

* Team Carson: $3.2 million ($3M from campaign, $184K from Super PAC

* Team Cruz: $1.3 million ($965K from campaign, rest from outside groups)

* Team Paul: $1.0 million ($875K from Super PAC, $125K from campaign)

* Team Fiorina: $1.0 million (all from Super PAC)

* Team O’Malley: $219,000 (all from Super PAC)

* Team Trump: $217,000 (all from campaign)

“I feel like I should spend and I don’t want to take any chances,” Trump said Tuesday. “And so I feel I have an obligation to myself and to the country to spend.”