The presidential race is barely under way, yet The New York Times has already “endorsed” its top choice for character assassination.

Marco Rubio, please step up.

Just two days after dredging up driving infractions of the Florida senator and his wife, the Times went after their finances.

Wednesday’s Page One smear slammed Rubio’s purchase of a “luxury speedboat.”

The point was to claim Rubio is fiscally reckless — with “significant debts. . . [a] lease of a $50,000 2015 Audi Q7; a strikingly low savings rate. . .”

In fact, as other outlets reported, Rubio spent $80,000 on a rather modest fishing boat — after earning an $800,000 advance on his autobiography.

For a couple in their mid-40s, the Rubios’ finances hardly stand out from many Americans’. And, as the senator’s book deal shows, he has impressive earning capacity outside of his Senate salary.

But why is the Times going after Rubio with such gusto so early?

It’s no surprise the liberal paper of record will bash leading GOP contenders. But two hit jobs in one week on a guy who’s at best third in a Republican field of nearly 20?

Perhaps Sen. Rubio represents a special threat. He’s not just a credible GOP candidate — he’s also a first-generation Cuban-American success story.

Few things worry the liberal establishment more than the rise of minority conservatives who reject welfare-state identity politics.

Recall the “high-tech lynching” of Clarence Thomas’ Supreme Court confirmation hearings. Or the way Democrats blocked Miguel Estrada from even getting a hearing after he was nominated to the federal bench.

Lurking between the lines of the Times’ report on Rubio’s finances is a smarmy smugness: This uppity right-wing Hispanic isn’t as successful as he claims. Who does he think he is?

It’s pretty clear who the Times thinks he is: Somebody to take out early.