Late-night host Jimmy Kimmel came under fire after mocking Vice President Mike Pence after Pence was caught on a hot mic asking if he could carry empty boxes of personal protective equipment (PPE) off a van and into the front door of a nursing home “for the cameras.”
This story has been updated to reflect a recent fact-check:
“Here he is, with no mask on, wheeling boxes of PPEs into a health care center, and doing his best to lift them,” Kimmel said, narrating the video. “What a hero.”
“And since it was going so well, and also because he didn’t realize he had a mic on, Magic Mike decided to keep it going.”
Someone tells Pence, “Those are empty sir.”
“Well, can I carry the empty ones, just for the camera?” Pence asks.
Watch:
Mike Pence caught on hot mic delivering empty boxes of PPE for a PR stunt. pic.twitter.com/IduvGhiPwj
— Matt McDermott (@mattmfm) May 8, 2020
Kimmel, however, faced a backlash from critics who accused the comedian of making it appear as if Pence had only delivered empty boxes of protective equipment.
Edit is misleading.
I went back to the original @cspan footage and sounds like @VP was making a joke about the empty boxes.
He doesn’t carry those last boxes. He shuts the van doors and turns to speak CEO of @fedresources
I isolated the clip here: https://t.co/GQQTE2D6Ki https://t.co/1apBTVlBw3
— Emmanuelle Saliba 🧐 (@_esaliba) May 8, 2020
A spokesman for Pence tweeted: “This is absolute garbage spread by @JimmyKimmel. Pence is clearly joking about empty boxes & if Kimmel showed the full clip from CSPAN, not the one he selectively edited, you see and hear it.”
CORRECTION: A fact-check published by USA TODAY determined that Vice President Mike Pence did not carry empty boxes to the nursing home. Kimmell has apologized for the misinformation and subsequently deleted the video.
