Donald Trump has found his belittling taunt for Marco Rubio: 'Choke artist'

Donald Trump calls Marco Rubio a &quot;choke artist,&quot; repeatedly

(Image credit: CNN/YouTube)

Of course Donald Trump was going to aim his towel-snapping taunts at Marco Rubio — it was just a matter of time. That time was Thursday's Republican debate in Houston, and the line that Trump went with was "choke artist." He used the phrase during the debate, in his sparring with Rubio, but he repeated it a number of times in a post-debate interview with Chris Cuomo. "The problem with Marco is he's a choke artist," Trump said. "He chokes." Lest you think that was an impromptu turn of phrase, Trump returned to the insult. "We can't have a choke artist," he said. "You know, one thing I learned from sports — I was actually a very good athlete — when you're a choker, you're always a choker."

"Choke artist" won't help Rubio if it sticks, like "low energy" clung to Jeb Bush and "cheat" seems to have made its mark on Ted Cruz. But there might be an upside for Rubio: It's much easier to dress up like a robot than a "choke artist."

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Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.