Senator talks the talk and then some

Texas Sen. Ted Cruz has stopped talking. He spent 21 hours and 19 minutes talking about … anything .. in an effort to stymie the Obama administration’s health care law. In the end, which came Wednesday, his attempt fell short. It also fell short of the senate filibustering record, held by the late Strom Thurmond (R-S.C.) of 24 hours, 18 minutes in 1957.

Technically, Cruz’s monologue was not a filibuster, since, per Senate rules, his time is limited and he’d have to give up the floor by a certain time.

But 21 hours of talking is a lot of work. Most people on the phone with a godparent run out of words around the 90-second mark, if that.

Here’s a little of Cruz in action:

Here’s another sublime moment:

Here are a couple more, a “Duck Dynasty” reference, and a shout-out to … Ashton Kutcher?