Marco Rubio’s life story is composed of the kind of dreamlike images which are filled with the twists, turns, and ultimate success that is so emblematic of what we consider when someone talks about “the American Dream.” But is that story diminished when the basic facts of it turn out to be nothing more than fiction, a tale told by a politician with a burning desire to appeal to a specific demographic group?

Here’s the story as Rubio tells it on the stump and at debates: He calls himself a “son of exiles,” and the goes on to remark that his parents left Cuba so they could escape the harsh realities of life in the island nation after Fidel Castro came to power. Castro, Rubio also likes to say when he recalls the story of his parents leaving Cuba, is a “thug.”

But the Washington Post begs to differ. After doing extensive research which included looking at naturalization papers and other official records, the Post says that in fact the Rubios left Cuba fully two-and-a-half years before Castro ever came to power.

Now there is little doubt that Rubio’s parents had good reasons for immigrating, if only because they wanted a better life for themselves and their children. There is nothing wrong with wanting the best for yourself and your children. But if those are the facts, then why manufacture a counter-narrative that is not supported by the truth?

And all of this speaks to a much larger question about the Florida Senator: Is he, as he accuses others of doing, merely saying what is politically expedient for him? Does he do this in order to claim a kinship with the thousands of other Cuban emigres in the state he represents in Congress? And if one lies in order to form a bond, doesn’t that bond then become false and even non-existent?

Marco Rubio, it would appear, is nothing but a political hack who will spin any tall tale or lie any calculated falsehood in order to advance himself as he seeks the highest office in the United States. Worse, his actions and his words prove something far more troubling: For if a man will lie about the most basic facts of his life–which are easily disproven–is there anything that man will not lie about?

Here’s Senator Rubio in 2015 talking about his family’s experience with the issue of immigration:

This article was originally published by the same author at BipartisanReport.com.