After U.S. President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris traveled to the state of Georgia on March 19, social media users shared reports claiming Biden and Harris flew there together, saying they were suspicious and left questions arise about their legitimacy. A White House Reuters reporter and a Reuters photographer who was at the air base where Biden and Harris landed told the Fact Check team that Biden was with the presidential plane, Air Force One, and Harris in Air Force Two arrived.
The reports show a photo of Biden and Harris walking down the steps of Air Force One, with captions, including: ‘The rule is the Prez, and the Veep never travel together for obvious reasons. Why does this happen then? More importantly, why is no one saying anything about it? “(Here) and ‘It is a standard government procedure that the president and the VP do not travel together, not even in the same car, which raises more questions about their legality!’ (here).
Comments on the posts include: “Not our legal president or VP!” and “They are taking care of Kamala to take over.”, as well as some suggesting that House President Nancy Pelosi, who is in third place in the presidency, has arranged for Biden and Harris to fly together: “Pelosi approves.”; “Nancy makes all the flight arrangements …”
During a visit to Georgia on March 19, Biden and Harris met with leaders and state legislators from the Asia-Pacific community, who were plagued by the killings of eight people, including six women of Asian descent in Atlanta, Georgia. . March 16 (here).
The photo in the social media messages is a photo of Reuters, visible here, with the caption “US President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris leave Air Force One to travel to the Centers for Disease Control in Atlanta after arrived at Dobbins Air. Reserve Base in Marietta, Georgia, USA, March 19, 2021. ”
The caption on another Reuters photo of Harris at Dobbins Air Base that day, visible here, explains that it shows Harris getting off Air Force Two before driving to Air Force One to meet Biden. This image here from Associated Press also shows Harris stepping down from Air Force Two.
White House Reuters reporter Trevor Hunnicutt, who was at the Dobbins Air Reserve Base and was with Biden all day, told the Fact Check team: “Biden arrived on Air Force One, Harris on Air Force Two. She got on Air Force One and they walked out together, but she flew separately. ‘
Reuters photographer Leah Millis, who took the photo of Harris disembarking from Air Force Two, also told the Fact Check team that Biden and Harris flew in separate planes, after which Harris went over and up a bit Air Force One boarded before moving on to the afternoon. meetings.
Vice Presidents left Air Force One earlier when they did not fly on Air Force One have been mentioned: Former Vice President Mike Pence can be seen in November 2018 (here, here) doing Air Force One with former President Trump in Chattanooga, Tennessee , leaves. However, footage and reporting from WRCB Chattanooga explains that Pence arrived on Air Force Two before Trump, as seen here.
Although it is not a written official rule, the president and vice president do not fly together for security reasons (here, here, here). The White House, the Secret Service and the Department of Homeland Security did not immediately respond to Reuters’ request for comment on the details of this rule.
In the past, however, they have traveled together on other means of transportation. Hunnicutt told Reuters that Harris and Biden shared a car for part of the ride during a recent trip to Georgia. A photo of Biden as he traveled vice president in a car with former president Obama can be seen here on the official Obama White House Flickr account. Former President Bill Clinton and former Vice President Al Gore traveled together on a campaign bus tour from Cleveland, Ohio to western New York in August 1992, as seen here.
VERDICT
Untrue. Reuters staff who were at the air base when Biden and Harris arrived confirmed that Harris had arrived on Air Force Two, not with Biden on Air Force One.
This article was produced by the Reuters Fact Check team. Read more about our fact-checking work here.