Leslie Moonves came out and said what everyone knows but only whispers to each other: Networks love Donald Trump because he's making them a ton of money.

He spoke to a conference of media executives at the Morgan Stanley Technology, Media and Telecom Conference in San Francisco about the megabucks rolling in.

Not that the CBS executive chairman and CEO might vote for the Republican presidential frontrunner, but he likes the ad money Trump and his competitors are bringing to the network.

"It may not be good for America, but it's good for CBS," he said of the presidential race.

Moonves called the campaign for president a "circus" full of mudslinging, and he hopes it continues.

"Most of the ads are not about issues. They're like the debates," he said.

"Bring it on, Donald," said Moonves.

I think it's time we reinstated the Fairness Doctrine and made these media companies work for their windfalls, don't you?

President Obama's former speechwriter summed it up well:

This is like a tobacco executive talking about selling people cigarettes https://t.co/yn4KuJfRPn

— Jon Favreau (@jonfavs) February 29, 2016