Alan Cranston
Chairman of the Senate Committee on Veterans' Affairs
In office January 3, 1987 – January 3, 1993
Preceded by	Frank Murkowski
Succeeded by	Jay Rockefeller
In office January 3, 1977 – January 3, 1981
Preceded by	Vance Hartke
Succeeded by	Alan K. Simpson
Senate Majority Whip
In office January 3, 1987 – January 3, 1991
Leader	Robert Byrd George Mitchell
Preceded by	Alan K. Simpson
Succeeded by	Wendell Ford
In office January 3, 1977 – January 3, 1981
Leader	Robert Byrd
Preceded by	Robert Byrd
Succeeded by	Ted Stevens
Senate Minority Whip
In office January 3, 1981 – January 3, 1987
Leader	Robert Byrd
Preceded by	Ted Stevens
Succeeded by	Alan K. Simpson
United States Senator from California
In office January 3, 1969 – January 3, 1993
Preceded by	Thomas Kuchel
Succeeded by	Barbara Boxer
25th California State Controller
In office 1959–1967
Governor	Pat Brown
Preceded by	Robert C. Kirkwood
Succeeded by	Houston I. Flournoy
Personal details
Born	Alan MacGregor Cranston (1914-06-19)June 19, 1914 Palo Alto, California
Died	December 31, 2000(2000-12-31) (aged 86) Los Altos, California
Political party	Democratic
Alma mater	Stanford University

Alan MacGregor Cranston (June 19, 1914 – December 31, 2000) was an American journalist and Democratic Senator from California.

Personal life and education[link]

Cranston was born in Palo Alto, California, the son of Carol (née Dixon) and William MacGregor Cranston. He earned his high school diploma from the old Mountain View High School, where among other things, he was a track star.^[1] He attended Pomona College and the Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México before graduating from Stanford University in Palo Alto in 1936.

Cranston was born into a well-to-do family from Northern California with interests in real estate. He married and divorced twice. His first wife, Geneva McMath, was the mother of his sons, Robin, who died young in an auto accident, and Kim, who survived him. Cranston was later married to Norma Weintraub.^[2]

Early career[link]

Cranston was a correspondent for the International News Service for two years preceding World War II.^[3] When an abridged English-language translation of Adolf Hitler's Mein Kampf was released, sanitized to exclude some of Hitler's anti-semitism and militancy, Cranston published a different translation (with annotations) which he believed more accurately reflected the contents of the book. In 1939, Hitler's publisher sued him for copyright violation in Connecticut; a judge ruled in Hitler's favor and publication of the book was halted.

Before enlisting in the armed forces in 1944 as a private (he held the rank of sergeant at his discharge), he worked in the Office of War Information. The following year he wrote a second book, The Killing of the Peace, a synopsis of the failed bid to get the United States to join the League of Nations immediately following World War I.

Cranston, a supporter of world government, attended the 1945 conference that led to the Dublin Declaration, and became president of the World Federalist Association in 1948.^[4] He successfully pushed for his state's legislature to pass the 1949 World Federalist California Resolution, calling on Congress to amend the Constitution to allow U.S. participation in a federal world government.

In 1952, Cranston co-founded the California Democratic Council (CDC), and served as chairman. Since that time, the CDC has served as an unofficial coalition of local Democratic clubs that coordinate electoral activities and activism throughout California. The CDC provided substantial support to Cranston in his bid for State Controller in 1958 and his numerous runs for the U.S. Senate.

Public office[link]

State Controller[link]

A Democrat, Cranston was elected California State Controller in 1958 and re-elected in 1962.

Senator[link]

In 1968, he was elected to the first of four six-year terms United States Senate, defeating Republican Max Rafferty in the general election after the staunchly conservative Rafferty had defeated the liberal Republican incumbent, Thomas Kuchel, in that party's primary.

The general election itself was also marred by mudslinging; A conservative writer, Frank Capell, authored a pamphlet suggesting that Cranston may have had Communist leanings in his youth, and that during his stint at the Office of War Information he helped falsely convince Franklin D. Roosevelt that Nazi Germany had perpetrated the Katyń massacre. Many of the same allegations were recycled in an article that ran in American Opinion in 1974 entitled "Alan Cranston: The Shadow in the Senate". The article's title was a reference to Lamont Cranston, the name of the main character in the popular radio program The Shadow).

In 1974, Cranston defeated Republican H.L. "Bill" Richardson, a conservative state senator previously affiliated with the John Birch Society. Cranston polled 3,693,160 votes (60.5 percent) to Richardson's 2,210,267 (36.2 percent).

In 1980, Cranston defeated Republican Paul Gann, 4,705,399 (56.5 percent) to 3,093,426 (37.1 percent).

Presidential candidate[link]

Cranston was Democratic Whip from 1977 to 1991.

He was an unsuccessful candidate for the Democratic presidential nomination for the 1984 election. He became the first announced candidate on February 1, 1983. Despite his age (69) and appearance that seemed even older (he dyed his little remaining white hair a color that most called orange^[5]), Cranston quickly became a recognized candidate. His strong support for a nuclear freeze won him an intense following among anti-nuclear activists, support that translated into campaign donations, committed staff (future Washington Senator Maria Cantwell moved to the state in 1983 to head up Cranston's caucus campaign effort there) and volunteers and straw poll victories in Wisconsin, California, and Alabama. However, the entry of George McGovern into the race in September 1983 cut into Cranston's support. He finished a weak fourth in Iowa in February 1984 and dropped out a week later after finishing seventh out of eight candidates in New Hampshire, with only 2 percent of the vote.

Cranston also faced a campaign debt of $2 million from his 1984 run as he began gearing up for an expensive and tough re-election fight in 1986, when he narrowly defeated the liberal Republican U.S. Representative Ed Zschau, who later left the Republican Party.

Reprimand[link]

Cranston was reprimanded by the U.S. Senate Select Committee on Ethics for "improper conduct" on November 20, 1991 after Lincoln Savings head Charles Keating's companies contributed $850,000 to voter registration groups closely affiliated with the senator. Keating had wanted federal regulators to stop "hounding" his savings and loan association. Although the committee found that "no evidence was presented to the Committee that Senator Cranston ever agreed to help Mr. Keating in return for a contribution," the committee deemed Cranston's misconduct the worst among the Keating Five. Cranston decided against running for a fifth term while he battled prostate cancer.

Track and field[link]

Throughout his public life, Cranston was notable for practicing and participating in the sport of track and field as a sprinter in special senior races. Many of the events, races for senior sprinters at major track meets, were the early events that became the sport of Masters athletics. While on his many political trips, Cranston would spend time sprinting in long hotel hallways to maintain his fitness.^[1]

Retirement and death[link]

He dedicated his retirement to the global abolition of nuclear weapons, first through the Nuclear Weapon Elimination Initiative of the State of the World Forum, and then as President of the Global Security Institute, which he founded in 1999.^[6]

He lived in Los Altos, California, from his retirement until his death on December 31, 2000.

See also[link]

	Biography portal
	World War II portal
	United States portal

Wikiquote has a collection of quotations related to: Alan Cranston

• Global Security Institute

References[link]

v t e United States Senators from California Class 1 Frémont Weller Broderick Haun Latham Conness Casserly Hager Booth Miller Hearst Williams Hearst Felton White Bard Flint Works Johnson Knowland Engle Salinger Murphy Tunney Hayakawa Wilson Seymour Feinstein Class 3 Gwin McDougall Cole Sargent Farley Stanford Perkins Phelan Shortridge McAdoo Storke Downey Nixon Kuchel Cranston Boxer

v t e United States Senate Majority Whips Lewis • Curtis • Jones • Fess • Lewis • Minton • Hill • Wherry • Myers • Johnson • Saltonstall • Clements • Mansfield • Humphrey • Long • Kennedy • Byrd • Cranston • Stevens • Simpson • Cranston • Ford • Lott • Nickles • Reid • Nickles • Reid • McConnell • Durbin

v t e United States Senate Minority Whips Wadsworth • Curtis • Gerry • Sheppard • Hebert • Wherry • Lucas • Saltonstall • Clements • Saltonstall • Dirksen • Kuchel • Scott • Griffin • Stevens • Cranston • Simpson • Ford • Reid • Nickles • Reid • Nickles • Reid • Durbin • Lott • Kyl

v t e Chairmen of the United States Senate Committee on Veterans' Affairs Hartke • Cranston • Simpson • Murkowski • Cranston • Rockefeller • Simpson • Specter • Rockefeller • Specter • Craig • Akaka • Murray

Ben Affleck
Ben Affleck speaking at a rally for Feeding America in 2009
Born	Benjamin Géza Affleck-Boldt[1] (1972-08-15) August 15, 1972 (age 39) Berkeley, California, United States
Alma mater	University of Vermont
Occupation	Actor, director, screenwriter, producer
Years active	1981–present
Spouse	Jennifer Garner (m. 2005–present)
Children	Violet Affleck Seraphina Affleck Samuel Affleck

Benjamin Géza Affleck-Boldt (born August 15, 1972), better known as Ben Affleck, is an American actor, film director, writer, and producer. He became known with his performances in Kevin Smith's films such as Mallrats (1995), Chasing Amy (1997), and Dogma (1999). Affleck won an Academy Award and a Golden Globe Award for the screenplay for Good Will Hunting (1997), which he co-wrote with Matt Damon, and has appeared in lead roles in such popular hits as Armageddon (1998), Pearl Harbor (2001), Changing Lanes (2002), The Sum of All Fears (2002), Daredevil (2003), Hollywoodland (2007) and State of Play (2009).

Affleck is a critically acclaimed filmmaker. He directed Gone Baby Gone (2007) and The Town (2010),^[2][3][4] playing the lead in the latter. He has worked with his younger brother, actor Casey Affleck, on several projects, including Good Will Hunting and Gone Baby Gone.

Affleck has been married to Jennifer Garner since June 2005. They have two daughters, Violet and Seraphina, and a son, Samuel. He dated the actress Gwyneth Paltrow in 1998. His relationship with actress/singer Jennifer Lopez attracted worldwide media attention, in which Affleck and Lopez were dubbed "Bennifer". The two broke up in 2004.

Affleck has been actively involved in politics and charitable causes. He and Matt Damon also founded the production company LivePlanet.

Early life[link]

Affleck was born in Berkeley, California. His mother, Christine Anne "Chris" (née Boldt),^[5] is a school district employee and teacher, and his father, Timothy Byers Affleck, has been, at various times, a drug counselor, social worker, janitor, auto mechanic, bartender, writer, director, and actor with the Theater Company of Boston.^[6][7] Affleck's mother graduated from Harvard University and was a freedom rider in the 1960s;^[8] she teaches in Cambridge Public Schools. His younger brother is actor Casey Affleck.^[9] Affleck has Irish, Scottish, and German ancestry (the surname "Affleck" is Scottish).^[8][10] He was raised in a mostly Episcopal family.^[11] His family moved to Cambridge, Massachusetts, when he was very young and his parents divorced in 1984. At age eight, Affleck met 10-year-old Matt Damon, who lived two blocks away (Damon is Affleck's tenth cousin, once removed, through a common New England ancestor).^[12][9][13] The two later attended Cambridge Rindge and Latin School together, although they were in different grades.^[9][13] Affleck attended Occidental College in Los Angeles, as well as the University of Vermont, and majored in Middle Eastern affairs.^[9][14]

Career[link]

Early work[link]

Affleck worked as a child actor, appearing on the PBS kids' series The Voyage of the Mimi, as well as in several movies made for television.^[13] Throughout the 1990s, he had roles in Lifestories: Families in Crisis, as a steroid-abusing athlete, as well as in several films, including 1992's School Ties (with Damon), the original Buffy the Vampire Slayer movie (uncredited),^[15][16] 1993's Dazed and Confused, 1995's Mallrats, and 1997's Chasing Amy.^[16] Mallrats and Amy marked the beginning of his collaboration with writer/director Kevin Smith. He had the starring role in Smith's Jersey Girl and has appeared in every View Askewniverse-Jersey film Smith has made to date, with the exception of Clerks.^[16] Ben Affleck also starred on various Saturday Night Live episodes in his early career. His directorial debut came in 1993, with a 16-minute long comedy called I Killed My Lesbian Wife, Hung Her on a Meat Hook, and Now I Have a Three-Picture Deal at Disney.^[17][18]

Box office ups and downs[link]

Affleck visiting the USS Enterprise (CVN-65) in Manama, Bahrain in December 2003

Affleck came to national attention working with Damon in Good Will Hunting in 1997,^[16] for which they shared writing credit and received the Oscar for Best Original Screenplay.^[9] They also both starred in the film. Good Will Hunting's success transformed Affleck from virtual unknown to being one of the world's best known celebrities. Along with Damon and producers Chris Moore and Sean Bailey, Affleck founded the production company LivePlanet, through which the four created the documentary series Project Greenlight, as well as the failed mystery-hybrid series Push, Nevada, among other projects. ^[19] Project Greenlight was nominated for an Emmy for Outstanding Reality Program in 2002, 2004 and 2005.^[20][21]

Following Good Will Hunting, Affleck starred in Armageddon (1998) as A. J. Frost, opposite Bruce Willis.^[22] The film generated mixed to negative critical reviews,^[23] but was a box office success, earning $553 million worldwide.^[24] In 1999, he co-starred with Sandra Bullock in the romantic comedy Forces of Nature.^[25] In 2001, Affleck collaborated with Armageddon director Michael Bay in the war film Pearl Harbor. The film opened to a mixed to negative reception,^[26][27] but was a box office success, earning $449 million worldwide.^[28]

In 2002, he was cast as Jack Ryan, a role previously played by Alec Baldwin and then Harrison Ford, in the fourth film in the Techno-thriller series, The Sum of All Fears. The movie, which ignored the events of the previous Jack Ryan films, also starred Morgan Freeman. The Sum of All Fears is based on the book of the same name by Tom Clancy.^[29] Ann Hornaday of The Washington Post wrote, Affleck and Freeman "create a believable chemistry".^[30] In the same year, Affleck starred opposite Samuel L. Jackson in the popular thriller Changing Lanes.^[31]

The following year he starred as the lead character Matt Murdock/Daredevil in Mark Steven Johnson's film Daredevil (2003). Affleck said Daredevil was his favorite comic book as a kid,^[32] and explained why he took the role by saying "Everybody has that one thing from childhood that they remember and that sticks with them. This story was that for me."^[33] He also said "I didn't want someone else to do it, because I was afraid that they would go out and do it different from the comic and screw it up."^[34] Roger Ebert, in review of Daredevil, wrote that both Affleck and co-star Jennifer Garner, were suitable for their roles.^[35] Daredevil grossed over $179 million worldwide.^[24]

Despite some critical missteps, his box office successes reportedly earned Affleck an average of $15M per film.^[36] However, following Daredevil, Affleck starred in several critically panned box office flops, including Gigli (2003) and Surviving Christmas (2004), and his career waned.

2006-2009[link]

Affleck at the premiere for He's Just Not That Into You in February 2009

Affleck starred in the critically acclaimed George Reeves noir biopic Hollywoodland, directed by HBO TV-series veteran Allen Coulter.^[37] His performance was well-received; Peter Travers of Rolling Stone, reviewing the film, wrote: "The irony is that Affleck's battering at the hands of fame has prepped him beautifully to play Reeves. He knows this character from the inside: the surface charm, the hidden vulnerability, the ache of watching a career become a joke and being helpless to stop it."^[38] Claudia Puig of USA Today wrote that Affleck gives a "strong performance".^[39] He was awarded the Volpi Cup for Best Actor at the Venice Film Festival, won the Supporting Actor of the Year award at the Hollywood Film Festival,^[40] and was nominated for a Golden Globe for Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role in a Motion Picture^[41] for this performance. Following the success of Hollywoodland, he appeared in the 2007 action film Smokin' Aces, playing Jack Dupree, a bounty hunter.^[42] Smokin' Aces received mixed reviews from critics,^[43] and was a box office failure.^[24]

However, also in 2007, Affleck made his directorial debut with Gone Baby Gone, for which he also co-wrote the screenplay — based on the book by Dennis Lehane — about two Boston area detectives investigating a little girl's kidnapping and how it affects their lives. His brother Casey starred in the film.^[44] It opened to rave reviews in October 2007.^[45] When asked why he decided to direct the film, Affleck said: "Directing a movie was really instructive for me. I think I learned a lot about writing, and a lot about acting, and I learned how all the pieces fit together from the inside. That was really valuable. It was a good thing."^[46] The film received critical acclaim.^[47] Lisa Schwarzbaum of Entertainment Weekly noted that Affleck "shows excellent instincts" as a director.^[48] Stephanie Zacharek of Salon.com wrote, "As a director, Ben Affleck may turn out to be quite good with actors [...] But he may need to work harder at shaping material, and at making his characters emerge as rounded, believable people."^[49]

Affleck appeared in Jimmy Kimmel's 2008 video 'I'm Fucking Ben Affleck'; a response to Kimmel's then girlfriend, Sarah Silverman's, video 'I'm Fucking Matt Damon'.^[50][51] Many other celebrities appeared in the video including Good Charlotte's Joel and Benji Madden, Macy Gray, Dominic Monaghan, Lance Bass, Josh Groban, Don Cheadle, Brad Pitt, Cameron Diaz, Robin Williams, Harrison Ford, Huey Lewis, Joan Jett, Pete Wentz, Christopher Mintz-Plasse, Meat Loaf, Dicky Barrett and many more.^[51]

2009-present[link]

Affleck and Jon Hamm on the set of The Town

In 2009, Affleck returned to acting, starring in three features, He's Just Not That into You, State of Play, and Extract. In He's Just Not That into You, a romantic comedy, he was part of an ensemble cast that included Jennifer Aniston, Drew Barrymore, Scarlett Johansson, Justin Long, and Jennifer Connelly.^[52] The film generated mostly mixed reviews,^[53] but was a box office success, earning $165 million worldwide.^[24] In State of Play, an adaptation of the British television serial State of Play, Affleck played Congressman Stephen Collins. The film is a political thriller which explores the relationship between politicians and the media.^[54] In the comedy film Extract, Affleck played Dean, a bartender, and the best friend to Jason Bateman's character.^[55] His performance in the film was well-received, with Barbara Vancheri of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reporting that "Affleck is a hoot as a long-haired fount of bad advice and drugs he keeps in a little tin behind the bar. After playing a square-jawed crimefighter, an actor turned Superman and a congressman, he is actually loose and funny."^[56]

Affleck directed his second feature, The Town, an adaptation of Chuck Hogan's novel Prince of Thieves, that was both a critical and commercial success when it was released in theaters in 2010.^[57] Along with directing and co-writing the film, he was part of the cast that includes Jon Hamm, Jeremy Renner, Chris Cooper and Blake Lively.

Affleck was awarded the Chairman's Award in the 2011 Palm Springs International Film Festival. Commenting on Affleck, Festival Chairman Harold Matzner said,

If there is truly a renaissance man in today’s cinema, it’s Ben Affleck. He has distinguished himself as a premier writer and director, as well as an actor with a broad-ranging and impressive filmography. In his latest work, The Town, Affleck once again puts his acting, writing and directorial skills to work, in a stinging portrait of a New England town and the grip it has on generation after generation, who find it impossible to leave. For his ability to “do it all” and constantly evolve as an artist, The Palm Springs International Film Festival is proud to present Ben Affleck with the 2011 Chairman’s Award.” ^[58]

Affleck will star in To the Wonder, an upcoming romantic drama written and directed by Terrence Malick, alongside Olga Kurylenko, Javier Bardem, Rachel McAdams and Rachel Weisz. Filming took place in fall 2010 in Bartlesville, Oklahoma and Pawhuska, Oklahoma.^[59]

Affleck will also be directing his third feature, Argo, for producers George Clooney and Grant Heslov. The film tells the story of a CIA operation to save six ambassadors during the 1979 Iran hostage crisis by faking a production for a large-scale science fiction film.^[60]

Following Argo, Affleck was selected to replace David Yates as the director for Warner Bros.' upcoming adaptation of Stephen King's novel, The Stand.^[61]

Activities[link]

Charitable and humanitarian projects[link]

Like Matt Damon, Affleck is a philanthropist. Affleck's support of the non-profit charitable organization, the A-T Children's Project,^[62] began while he was filming Forces of Nature.^[9][37] Affleck met a then nine-year-old child, Joe Kindregan, who has the rare disease ataxia-telangiectasia (A-T).^[9][37] The disease, described as like having muscular dystrophy, cystic fibrosis, immune deficiency and cancer all at once, is progressive; children with A-T usually do not live beyond their late teens.^[9][37] Affleck attends benefits and spoke to Congress to advocate for the charity,^[9][37] and in 2007 was the keynote speaker at the graduation ceremony of Falls Church High School in Fairfax, Virginia, from which Kindregan was graduating.^[63] He is also a Member of the www.Eurocirc.de

In June 2008, he appeared in an ABC News exclusive report exploring the humanitarian crisis in the Eastern Congo. Affleck travelled to the African nation and interviewed refugees, warlords, and members of parliament. "I think the more painful something is, the more you want to distance yourself from it," he said. "I think the hard part is actually to let some of that go and to realize that when you see some of these images of people suffering in some way or another, to kind of remember that these are people who are in fact just in different circumstances than you are, but that are kind of dealing with [those circumstances] in a pretty brave and enduring way."^[64] In December 2008, he teamed up with the United Nations releasing a short film highlighting the plight of Congolese refugees,^[65] and in March 2010, Affleck announced the formation of the Eastern Congo Initiative, which he founded as "the first U.S. based advocacy and grant-making initiative wholly focused on working with and for the people of eastern Congo."^[66]

Political activism[link]

In the final weeks of the 2000 Presidential campaign, Affleck promoted the Democratic ticket, supporting Al Gore and repeatedly delivering a get-out-the-vote plea: "It's very important to vote. The president will appoint three or four Supreme Court justices."^[67] During the final week of the race, Affleck – along with Helen Hunt, Martin Sheen, Rob Reiner and other actors – spent an hour at a phone bank calling registered Democrats.^[68] "People in my generation have a low voter turnout. One of the reasons that I'm here is to demonstrate that no matter who you are going to vote for ... I think it's important to get involved and get out and vote," he told reporters. "But I'm going to tell people to vote for Gore."^[67]

On October 28, 2000, Affleck flew with Hillary Clinton, who was running for a Senate seat, to Ithaca, New York, where he introduced her at a Cornell University rally. He told the college crowd that Clinton had been advocating for women and working families since "Rick Lazio was running around the frat house in his underwear". Lazio, then a Long Island congressman, was Clinton's Republican opponent.^[69]

Affleck on the set of The Rachel Maddow Show, April 16, 2009

On November 6, 2000, the final day of the campaign, he was one of several high-profile celebrities summoned to Miami Beach by Miramax Films boss Harvey Weinstein for a late-night Gore rally, just hours before polls opened nationwide.^[67] The Gore campaign's last event, a final effort to energize South Beach voters, did not end until about 1:00 a.m., but Affleck flew back to New York that morning and made a surprise live appearance on The Rosie O'Donnell Show. It was 10:15 a.m. when he made his final public pitch from a Rockefeller Center studio, noting that he was "a little bit tired ... I've been out getting involved, doing stuff and trying to get people to vote. And that's why I came by here". Also, "Today is the get-out-the-vote day and ... I think this is the time to get involved, especially the young folks who are here ... I'm about to go vote," He then said, "I am personally gonna vote for Al Gore".^[67][70]

As votes were tallied that night, Affleck told Salon.com's Amy Reiter, "I'm nervous this evening, but one of the things that's exciting to me is the number 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".^[71]

In the May 2001 issue of GQ, Affleck said, "My fantasy is that someday I'm independently wealthy enough that I'm not beholden to anybody, so I can run for Congress on the grounds that everyday people should be in government".^[72] However, when he was asked about his political ambitions in an April 2009 interview to promote the 2009 film, State of Play, Affleck said, "I really like my job that I have now. Plus, unlike in Hollywood where you need one director to hire you, in politics you have to have a lot of people to vote for you. I think it's harder work. I really am happy with what I'm doing now. In fact I've never been at a place where I've felt better about going to work everyday. I'm more engaged and very, very happy."^[73]

Affleck aboard USS Enterprise (CVN 65) on a USO sponsored tour of the Persian Gulf in December 2003

In 2004, Affleck actively campaigned for Democratic presidential nominee John Kerry.^[74] During the first day of the 2004 Democratic National Convention, he was featured on Larry King Live with Tucker Carlson and Al Sharpton.^[75] Larry King asked if he would consider running for office, and Affleck admitted to contemplating the proposition. Specific attention focused on whether he would run for Kerry's open Senate seat (as Affleck was from Massachusetts). He noted that the line between politics and entertainment is becoming increasingly blurred, as Ronald Reagan and Arnold Schwarzenegger both came from the entertainment business.^[76]

Affleck supports legalizing gay marriage, saying in 2004, "I don't think the government should be involved in any way in people's bedrooms or lives. With so much hatred and unpleasantness in the world, why would you want to get in the way of people who love each other marrying each other? Anybody who wants to be able to get married to anybody else should be able to. It's not my business."^[77] He also appeared in a print advertisement with his openly gay cousin in support of Parents and Friends of Lesbians and Gays.^[78] Though supporting the Democratic ticket in 2004, Affleck disagreed with their position on regulation of firearms and increased gun control.^[79]

Despite his opposition to George W. Bush's policies as president, in an interview with Bill O'Reilly in July 2004 Affleck said, "I had the pleasure of and the honor of meeting the President of the United States at the Daytona 500. I found him to be a collegial, affable, kind guy." He went on to say Bush "is a patriot and he’s a man who believes in the country. He's trying to further an agenda he believes in. I happen to disagree with most of his policies, but I respect the man."^[80]

On December 21, 2010, Ben Affleck appeared on NPR and criticized CEOs for making so much money. "CEOs' pay shouldn't be 200 times the average worker. It used to be nine times."As noted in the article, Affleck did not criticize highly paid actors who also earn many times what an average worker does.^[81] On November 4, 2010, Affleck was commended for returning a second check for $250,000 that was mistakenly sent to him for appearing at the opening of a casino at the Greenbriar resort.^[82]

On March 14, 2012, Ben Affleck wrote an article endorsing the Kony 2012 campaign. ^[83] Affleck applauded the action taken by the Invisible Children in regards to raising awareness about child soldiers in Africa as well as raising awareness about the LRA. Such a display of awareness about a foreign issue has not been witnessed since the two videos of BBC foreign correspondent Michael Burek. ^[84] However, Affleck stated that "Westerners are not and will never be the 'saviors' of Africa".^[85]