Newark Mayor Cory Booker is a well-known political figure and like President Obama, he is also a Star Trek fan. Earlier this week the mayor called in to a New Jersey public radio station to show support during a pledge drive and during his call he was pitted against noted nerd John Hodgman in a Star Trek trivia contest. Listen to that below plus see how the Daily Show and Colbert Report responded to Obama’s "Jedi Mind Meld" statement.
Booker and Hodgman battle Trek Trivia For NJ radio pledge drive
On Tuesday Newark Mayor and Senatorial candidate Cory Booker called in WFMU radio show "Best Show" to give his support for the show and the station. In studio was noted nerd John Hodgman and during the mayor’s time on the air the show’s host Tom Scharpling held a trivia contest for Hodgman and Booker. You can listen to the exchange in the embed below. (it should start at the beginning of the trivia challenge at 2:19:20).
In the end Hodgman did best Booker in the Trek trivia challenge, but the mayor may have the last laugh as (as we reported in December he could end up with a cameo in the next JJ Abrams produced Star Trek movie.
Booker (L) at NJ screening of "Star Trek" in May 2009 and Hodgman (R) giving President Obama a ‘live long and prosper’ salute at Correspondents Dinner in June 2009
Booker dings Obama’s ‘Jedi Mind Meld’ + Watch Stewart and Colbert’s takes
You will note that Booker started off by noting that he knows the difference between a Vulcan Mind Meld and a Jedi Mind Trick. This was a bit of a dig on President Obama who earlier this month responded to critics of how he wasn’t able to convince Congress to go his way by saying "The fact that they don’t take it means that I should somehow do a Jedi Mind Meld with these folks and convince them to do what’s right." This conflation of the Star Trek and Star Wars phrases was fodder for John Stewart and Stephen Colbert, as you can see below.
Don’t mess with Hodgman.
Also love how no one challenged the mayor for calling the race the Kardashians.
Ha!
awesomeness.
Long Live my adopted state of New Jersey.
If Governor Christie ever needs a boost in his “Trek” credentials, he can come for a visit in Weehawken. As for “Star Wars” credentials, I’ll just mail him the DVD’s.
Note to all politicians in this mess: Associate “The Immunity Syndrome” with Obi-Wan’s bad headache when Alderaan is destroyed (done years later) and get the Trekkie vote.
I love Cory Booker. I follow him on twitter and I don’t even live in NJ. I wish my city had a mayor like him…
I’d rather spend time with the Cardassians than the Kardashians…although I can see how the two could be confused. LOL.
I’m not sure if I should be proud or ashamed that I considered all the questions very easy.
And I’m reminded of the first time I heard of the Kardashians, thinking that it was some kind of odd Trek reference.
– Harry
ERROR: Could not connect to stream ;.(
March 13 show is not yet up on WFMU’s archive. Grrr.
Got it, yay!
“Botany Bay …. Botany Bay?” … Chekov quote from WOK – points for Hodgman! Plus of course his Spock quote toward the end.
I liked when Booker said “Trek … Trekkers” – he knows some of us like being called “Trekkers” vice “Trekkies” ;-) And … “k’plagh”!
I have no life
In President Obama’s favor, I argue:
He couldn’t … quite … remember the word that comes next in the phrase “Jedi mind …” in the Star Wars reference.
MIND OVER 50 YEARS OLD ‘INSTANT RECALL’ SYSTEM [I know whereof I speak here, believe me]:
What goes with “mind” …?
Ah yes! “meld”! “mind meld” just resides so prominently in our president’s mind, “meld” followed “mind” as surely as night must follow day
Hodgman isn’t nearly as clever or as funny as he thinks he is. He was on QI a while back and looked like the idiot american in the face of the Brits there.