After losing to Trump by a landslide in his home state, Florida Sen. Marco Rubio announced last Tuesday that he is effectively suspending his presidential campaign, NPR reports.
“After tonight it is clear that while we are on the right side, we will not be on the winning side,” Rubio told supporters in Miami.
Rubio’s bow out follows a sequence of unfortunate events that seemed to set the senator back in an irreparable way. In early February, Trump took to MSNBC’s “Morning Joe” and mocked Rubio for his tendency to perspire heavily.
“I like Marco, but Marco has a tendency to sweat. Perhaps at a record-setting level,” Trump said.
Around the same time, Rubio’s campaign staff received a package of water and towels delivered by Trump’s campaign with a note that read: “Since you’re always sweating, we thought you could use some water. Enjoy!”
Meanwhile, Rubio suffers from a serious but common medical condition called hyperhidrosis, a condition experienced by eight million Americans that causes them to sweat four to five times the normal amount.
Unfortunately, Rubio did sweat the mean-spirited comments and shot back at Trump, mocking Trump after a bad debate for his small hands, suggesting that might be representative of other parts of Trump’s anatomy. The comments ended up backfiring, and Rubio later stated regretting the slurs, which had embarrassed his children.
Since then, Rubio never seemed to make a full recovery.
All the same, his resignation from the presidential campaign is certainly abrupt. Rubio came onto the GOP presidential election scene like a brightly burning star. The young, religious son of Cuban immigrants represented a new kind of Republican candidate who appeared to mirror the interests of America’s ever-growing Hispanic population.
Running for president was a huge political gamble for Rubio. The young senator was up for re-election, but instead opted to run for the White House. Like most bright burning stars, Rubio’s risk seemed to end his shine quickly.
