BEN AFFLECK stars in the upcoming film "Bounce."

I know that you've been campaigning for Gore, and I'm wondering what it is about him that appeals to you?

I've been a Democrat all my life. I grew up in a very strong union household, a politically active household. I don't believe in the deregulation of Social Security. I believe that that's the same kind of politics that got us in trouble with the savings and loans. I believe in a party of inclusiveness. I believe in a party that's going to work for working families, middle-income families and poor families, as opposed to one that cultivates a thinly veiled attempt to favor wealthy campaign contributors and friends.

I believe very strongly in a woman's right to choose. I believe very strongly in equal pay for women. I mean, I'm not a big environmentalist, but I also don't believe we ought to so gratuitously sell out our national reserves. I'm nervous this evening, but one of the things that's exciting to me is the amount of people who voted. No matter who wins, I think it's a healthy thing for our country that so many voters have come out and participated in the process. Either way, I think the most important number will be the turnout.

Are you worried about a Bush win?

No. I think you have to try to transcend the politics of partisanship and rancor. No matter who wins, I hope the country can find -- rather than the partisan bickering that has characterized the Republican Congress and the impeachment process -- a way to work together.

The essence of politics goes against the nature of those who consider themselves idealists. It's compromise. So whoever wins, the race being so close, I hope the winner will recognize and embrace that spirit of compromise and work toward embracing some elements of the agenda of the party that doesn't end up getting power in order to move the whole country forward.

It's obvious the country is split in many ways, and I think the only healthy, productive way to move forward is to recognize that there's a strong sentiment on either side of the fence and try to build a coalition that can function and work. Partisanship, as [George] Washington warned, although he called it "factionalism" in his farewell address, is one of the greatest dangers to a democracy. You have people who are intractable.

Why do you think it's so close?

Because there was, like, a lack of interest, since contemporary politics means moving toward the center. So what happens is you have both parties scrambling for centrist voters. It turns into, unfortunately, kind of a prom-king personality contest. Both parties were less than effective in characterizing the difference between the two of them.

It's also close because there's a real division in this country in terms of what people feel like. It's not enough to build a national party, a national coalition. People have very different priorities in very different parts of the world. You have working Democratic union Catholics, like [those] where I grew up in Boston, who don't believe in abortion but who believe in unions. You have all kinds of different agendas. It's remarkable to me that the two-party system can maintain itself in such a heterogeneous country.

What do you think of Ralph Nader?

I'm disappointed in Nader -- I really am. Ultimately, he chose the road of self-aggrandizement over trying to further the politics that he claimed to care about. I think he was disingenuous. I used to think of Nader as a man of integrity; I now think of him as a kind of a camera hog, a glory hound. It's upsetting, deeply upsetting. If I come away with one thing from this election, it'll be that Nader deliberately fragmented the vote in crucial states. If Roe vs. Wade, for example, is appealed, I hope he can still sleep. I hope that's what he wanted because he's too smart a man not to understand that that's the effect of his actions. And where I grew up, you take responsibility for your actions. I hope he's willing to accept responsibility for his.

TINA BROWN is the editor of Talk magazine.

I know it's too early to call it, but I wonder if there's an issue that's particularly close to your heart in the presidential race.

Well, there are issues I care about very much, like guns and the right to choose. Those are very dear to me. But I've got to admit that I don't feel George W. Bush has got the intellectual equipment to be the president. I really feel it's a big mistake. I think America is going to wake up with a giant hangover tomorrow if they elect Bush.

What do you think is attracting people to him? How do you explain it?

Unfortunately, I think that people are just less and less well informed, and the fact that they have an excess of media makes them tune out the media. And they're simply judging it on personality instead of on issues, because they don't really seem to have enough information. They just tune it out, which is really an amazing thing. I think maybe media overload is to blame for the lack of genuine grasp on the difference between these two candidates. I get very irritated by constantly reading that there was not much to choose between them, when there was a tremendous difference between these candidates. So people tend to think, erroneously, that there's not much to choose between.

Do you think the Nader campaign has a lot to do with that?

Nader has been a menace. I think it was very unfortunate that he was a wrecking ball in this situation.

What about the personality thing with Bush? Do you think he has a personality that's particularly appealing?

No, I think his affability and [that he's] telegenic fit the very meretricious age. And I think that, unfortunately, Gore is lamentably unskilled in the area of telegenic, easy, photo-op kind of charm. He doesn't seem to have it. And, alas, it just happens to be the skill set that was necessary to get elected.

Is there one thing that you're particularly worried about should Bush get into office?

I'm worried about the Supreme Court -- that's what worries me the most. And I'm worried about his responses in a really complex crisis, because I don't go along with the idea that his "advisors" will save the day, because you're often in a situation as a chief executive where all your advisors disagree. So I'm worried about him in a situation like the Middle East, which is all about nuance. I don't think he's a very nuanced kind of opinion maker or opinion holder.

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