Will the real Marco Rubio please stand up?

CAMBRIDGE — On the classic American game show “To Tell the Truth,” three contestants claimed the same identity while a panel of celebrities questioned them, searching for inconsistencies.

After the panelists cast their votes, the host delivered the famous request: “Will the real ___ please stand up?” Venezuelans have been asking that question about US Secretary of State Marco Rubio ever since American troops captured President Nicolás Maduro in January.

More than six months later, they are still waiting for an answer.

There seem to be three Rubios, each with a plausible claim to being the real one.

The first is the Rubio many Venezuelans thought they knew: the son of Cuban immigrants who understands what dictatorship does to countries and families, and who has spent most of his public life denouncing tyranny and championing freedom, democracy, and the rule of law.

This Rubio is supposedly fighting an uphill battle against those within US President Donald Trump’s administration who view Venezuela not as a democracy to be restored but as an oil field to exploit and a security ...