Does video show Mike Pence carrying empty PPE boxes for PR stunt? Fact Check

Messages online claim that Vice President Mike Pence was carrying empty PPE boxes to a nursing home as part of a PR stunt.

FALSE

In a piece of footage circulating online, US Vice President Pence is shown to be unloading two boxes containing PPE to the front door of a nursing home before motioning towards more boxes inside a van. A person accompanying Pence explains that those boxes are empty, before Pence responds by saying “Can I carry the empty ones? For the camera“. Someone accompanying Pence responds “Absolutely“.

However, to conclude that Pence was thus carrying empty PPE boxes “for the cameras” would be inaccurate. Viewing the full footage of Pence’s visit (for example this video from C-SPAN) shows that after the circulating clipped video ends, Pence’s remark is also met with laughter. Pence doesn’t lift any of the boxes he was told were empty from the van, instead he closes the van doors and heads to speak to the waiting press.

As such, it would be a fair assumption that Pence was merely making a joke. At no point does he pick up any boxes that he was told were empty, neither does he many any attempt to do so.

So we rank the claim that Pence was carrying empty PPE boxes (or made any genuine attempt to do so) as false.

The relevant part of the C-SPAN video linked above begins at around the 9 minute mark.