ANWR: Teamsters lambaste pretend president Martin Sheen for “pretend facts”

“West Wing” actor voices series of movie theater commercials against opening ANWR for oil development

Steve Sutherlin

PNA Managing Editor

The performance of actor Martin Sheen in a series of commercials against opening the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge was Oscar-worthy, but the script was purely fiction, the Teamsters union said in a statement Nov. 5.

The commercials, which played in more than a dozen movie theaters across the United States, featured the voice of Sheen, who plays fictional President Josiah Bartlett on the NBC television series “The West Wing.”

“I couldn’t think of a more perfect champion for these pretend facts than a pretend president,” said Jerry Hood, Teamsters special assistant for energy policy. “The environmental lobby have repeated these half-truths for months, hoping that will make them true.”

In the commercials Sheen states that ANWR contains “six months of oil” when, in reality, ANWR could supply the United States with a safe, reliable source of oil for the next 30 years, the union said. According to the U.S. Geological Survey, ANWR contains between 5.6 billion and 16 billion barrels of oil. By contrast, Prudhoe Bay has pumped 13 billion barrels of oil and has been in operation for 30 years.

Hood called on the U.S. Senate to rely on real-life leaders when considering matters of energy independence and national security.

“I join President Bush in calling on the Senate to pass a comprehensive national energy policy now,” Hood said. “More than ever, we should listen to the commander in chief whose Oval Office is located in Washington, D. C. — not Hollywood.”

Sheen, a political activist known for his performance as Capt. Willard opposite Marlon Brando in the classic film “Apocalypse Now,” sidestepped a 1996 invitation to run for vice president opposite Ralph Nader on the Green Party ticket.

“I was flattered since I believed in their whole platform, particularly with the environment, human rights and education and health care, but I don't have the kind of intelligence or the makeup to be a president," Sheen was quoted in www.horizonMag.com.

The actor has been outspoken regarding his opinion of President Bush.

“George W Bush is like a bad comic working the crowd, a moron, if you'll pardon the expression," Sheen told Radio Times Feb. 13.

Sheen’s “West Wing” performance earned him Emmy award nominations for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series for the series’ first two seasons. He won an Emmy for Outstanding Guest Actor in a Comedy Series on “Murphy Brown.”