Jay Leno said it best: 

"And Martin Sheen's Visa commercials have been pulled off the air. Reportedly because of his political views. So apparently Visa is everywhere you want to be, unless you're in an anti-war march, then you're screwed."

It was, without a doubt, one of the best celebrity ads ever to hit the airwaves.  Then, seemingly overnight, it disappeared.

The credit card company offers this explanation in a News Bite, Sojourners Magazine (July-August, 2003) --- 

Charlie and Martin Sheen's popular Visa TV ad was pulled in March --  reportedly because of Sheen Sr.'s outspoken anti-war stance based on Catholic social teaching.  However, a Visa spokesperson said, "Visa does not use its advertising to make political statements, and neither the spot nor the conclusion of its run should be interpreted as one."

Hmmmmm...yes, of course...