It's been a question discussed by liberal bloggers for years, and the creator of "Star Wars" has finally settled it once and for all:

Former Vice President Dick Cheney is Emperor Palpatine, and former President George W. Bush is Darth Vader.

Phew...glad that's settled.

So reports New York Times columnist -- as well as Bush/Cheney hater extraordinaire -- Maureen Dowd (h/t Big Hollywood):

Updated below: Lucasfilm rep says Lucas backs Obama's economic policy, tax hikes on rich.

Noting that "the cornerstone of American capitalism is that you can make as much money as you want when you work for a company," filmmaker George Lucas told CNSNews.com*, adding that he thinks salary caps for corporate executives should be decided by corporate boards of directors, not politicians:

I think it would be a good thing for shareholders to unite and say, "We are not interested in paying our executives this much money." That would work. But it's not the government's job to do that. It's the stockholders' job, but of course, they don't seem to mind [high CEO salaries]. I'm not sure why. I wouldn't pay somebody that much money.

Lucas added that he earns his pay based on the success of his movies:

George Lucas, the creator of the Star Wars movies and writer/producer of the Indiana Jones film franchise, has hailed Barack Obama as “a hero in the making,” declaring that Obama, “for all of us that have dreams and hope, is a hero.” A Wednesday Agence France-Presse (AFP) dispatch headlined, really, “The force is with Obama, 'Star Wars' creator says,” reported:

George Lucas has created legendary film heroes like Luke Skywalker and Indiana Jones, but the US director says that in real life, his hero is Barack Obama. Lucas was in Japan on Wednesday to promote his latest film, Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, as Obama clinched the Democratic Party's nomination for President.

"We have a hero in the making back in the United States today because we have a new candidate for President of the United States, Barack Obama," Lucas said when asked who his childhood heroes were.

Obama, "for all of us that have dreams and hope, is a hero," Lucas said.