Exclusive: Martin Sheen Robocalls Urge Senators To Give SCOTUS Nom A Hearing

Actor Martin Sheen, who plays President Josiah "Jeb" Bartlet in the NBC series "The West Wing," puts his feet up during an interview Aug. 14, 2002 in Culver City, Calif. Sheen, who has signed on for three more years... Actor Martin Sheen, who plays President Josiah "Jeb" Bartlet in the NBC series "The West Wing," puts his feet up during an interview Aug. 14, 2002 in Culver City, Calif. Sheen, who has signed on for three more years as the fictional president, received his third Emmy nomination for the Bartlet role in July. "The West Wing" inaugurates its fourth season with a two-hour episode on Sept. 25. (AP Photo/Ric Francis) MORE LESS
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A progressive group is invoking the classic television show “The West Wing” via its star Martin Sheen to pressure GOP senators who face tough re-elections to hold hearings on President Obama’s Supreme Court nominee.

A robocall campaign by the liberal People For The American Way will get underway in Pennsylvania and Wisconsin and target Sens. Pat Toomey (R-PA) and Ron Johnson (R-WI), respectively, who are both up for re-election. People For The American way provided the TPM with the robocall in advance of the public announcement.

In the call, Martin Sheen — who played fictional Democratic president Jed Bartlet — urges voters to call their senators and tell them to put their “Constitutional duties first—and give fair consideration to President Obama’s nominee.”

The move comes as conservative legal groups have ramped up their own campaigns to discourage Republican senator for agreeing to any hearings or votes for Obama’s nominee to succeed the late Justice Scalia.

Late update: The Martin Sheen call is going out in Wisconsin, but the Pennsylvania robocall is still in the works, People For The American Way clarified after this post was originally published.

Listen to the robocall aimed at Johnson below:

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