If you want to talk for twenty hours about a topic in order to get attention for an issue, you have to find entertaining ways of telling the story.  Pop-culture references are one of the most effective ways to make memorable points — as Dennis Miller’s career has proven for many years.  Cruz, in going after the Beltway establishment, likened it to the Empire from Star Wars and included Sen. Mike Lee in an impersonation of one of its most famous lines (via Twitchy):

Before that, Cruz read from a speech given by Ashton Kutcher at the Teen Choice Awards that was widely hailed for its endorsement of the work ethic over the entitlement mentality.  That’s a recent pop reference that many conservatives missed or ignored, but might have some resonance with the people Cruz hopes to reach with this exhausting effort.

Whether or not the Empire strikes back, as Cruz predicts, he later scoffed at the damage from criticism. “The real damage” of ObamaCare, Cruz said, “will be felt by the working men and women of this country.” In other words …

And heck, Senator Cruz may have already made that reference, too.