Ted Cruz 'absolutely' prefers Captain Kirk to Captain Picard
Republican presidential hopeful Sen. Ted Cruz (Texas) "absolutely" prefers Star Trek's Captain Kirk to Captain Picard, telling The New York Times that he thinks Kirk would likely be the Republican and Picard the Democrat.
"Kirk is working class; Picard is an aristocrat. Kirk is a passionate fighter for justice; Picard is a cerebral philosopher," Cruz explained. "The original Star Trek pressed for racial equality, which was one of its best characteristics, but it did so without sermonizing."
Cruz — a known Trekkie and comic book fan — was thrilled to have been asked his opinion on the matter.
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If you were a journalist interviewing you, what would you ask? Who knows, I might well ask, "Kirk or Picard?" I've never been asked that before, and I actually have a strong opinion on it.Well, that goes with being a Kirk person. It does indeed. Let me do a little psychoanalysis. If you look at "Star Trek: The Next Generation," it basically split James T. Kirk into two people. Picard was Kirk's rational side, and William Riker was his passionate side. I prefer a complete captain. To be effective, you need both heart and mind. [The New York Times]
As for Star Wars, Cruz said that he's always been "a Han Solo guy," and "certainly not" a Darth Vader fan. "And when it comes to comics, I was more of a Spider-Man guy."
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Jeva Lange was the executive editor at TheWeek.com. She formerly served as The Week's deputy editor and culture critic. She is also a contributor to Screen Slate, and her writing has appeared in The New York Daily News, The Awl, Vice, and Gothamist, among other publications. Jeva lives in New York City. Follow her on Twitter.
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