As Donald Trump continues to pile up Republican primary wins and delegates, rivals Ted Cruz and John Kasich announced that they are teaming up to stop the billionaire businessman. Here are a few uneasy alliances they might learn from:  

Kasich and the Dallas Mavericks:  After he left the Cleveland Cavaliers for the Miami Heat in 2010, there was no one more reviled in Ohio than Lebron James. The Akron native was wooed by every NBA team that could afford him and the drawn-out process culminated in a drawn-out TV special in which he announced The Decision.  

When the Heat made it to the NBA finals only to lose to the Dallas Mavericks, Kasich congratulated the Mavericks, making not-so-subtle swipes at Ohio’s not-so-favorite son, saying the Mavs “displayed the loyalty, integrity and teamwork essential to victory before the entire country, affirming that these traits are as crucial as talent and athleticism.”  

Kasich also praised Dallas’ Dirk Nowitzki, the finals MVP, for staying with the Mavericks for his entire career, “keeping his talents in Dallas,” a dig at James’ announcing he was “taking my talents to South Beach.”  

Alexander Hamilton and Thomas Jefferson vs. Aaron Burr:  If Kasich and Cruz want to know how to successfully stop a common enemy, they should look no further than Broadway sensation “Hamilton,” based on the life and career of founding father Alexander Hamilton.  

Thomas Jefferson served as secretary of state under George Washington while Hamilton was his treasury secretary but the two fought bitterly on everything from creating a national bank to whether to support France in its conflict with Britain. The Broadway musical includes two clever  rap  battles featuring their conflicts.  

Fast-forward to the 1800 presidential race when then-Vice President Jefferson was running against New York Sen. Aaron Burr and incumbent John Adams. Eventually, Jefferson and Burr, who were both Democratic Republicans, ended up having the same amount of electoral votes, leaving the decision to the House of Representatives. Many Federalists in Congress were open to Burr, who was not as ideological as Jefferson. But Hamilton put his bad blood with Jefferson aside and urged his fellow Federalists to support Jefferson.  

In one letter , Hamilton wrote “Mr. Jefferson, though too revolutionary in his notions, is yet a lover of liberty and will be desirous of something like orderly Government — Mr. Burr loves nothing but himself,” setting a standard for more political burns to follow.  

Jefferson would in turn win the presidency, but Hamilton’s support for Jefferson along with his opposition to Burr’s candidacy for governor of New York would lead to their fateful duel, where Burr would end up being  “the damn fool that shot him.”  

David Lee Roth and Sammy Hagar:  Most people associate rock ‘n’ roll band Van Halen with its lead singer as much as they do with namesake guitarist Eddie Van Halen’s six-string virtuosity.  

The band started with frontman David Lee Roth, a flamboyant showman with a penchant for martial arts. But Roth quit the band in 1985 to go solo and was replaced by Sammy Hagar, who had a wider vocal range and stayed with the band until 1996.  

In 2002, the two frontmen teamed up for a tour, but they feuded bitterly, with Hagar saying he would never tour with Roth again. Roth joked, “Sammy throws a party. I am the party.”  

Hagar embarked on a brief reunion tour with Van Halen in 2004, but Roth rejoined the band full-time in 2007.  

Batman and Superman (Spoiler Alert):  The new film “Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice” is an example of how not to have a successful alliance. In the new movie, Batman and Superman have differing views of how to execute justice, ultimately leading to a brawl in Gotham.  

At one point, Batman is about to kill Superman with a spear made of Kryptonite until he discovers their mothers shared the same first name — Martha. Ultimately the two team up to take on Lex Luthor’s machinations alongside Wonder Woman. However, the movie does end with Superman sacrificing his own life to defeat the monster Doomsday by stabbing him with the Kryptonite spear.  

In their announcement, Cruz and Kasich didn’t spoil their plot by revealing which will be the sacrifice.  

Contact Garcia at EricGarcia@cqrollcall.com and follow him on Twitter @EricMGarcia


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