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Vice President Mike Pence visited NASA's Kennedy Space Center on Thursday where he toured the facilities, addressed employees, and touched "critical space flight hardware" despite clear instructions not to.。

Photos from Pence's tour of the facilities that house the Orion spacecraft show the VP placing his hand on a piece of hardware labeled with a sign that reads "DO NOT TOUCH" in bold, red letters.。

Mike, why?

Mike, why? The sign's right there.  。Mashable Light SpeedWant more out-of-this world tech, space and science stories?Sign up for Mashable's weekly Light Speed newsletter.
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Vice President Mike Pence, right, gets a tour of the Orion clean room with Sen. Marco Rubio, left, by Bob Cabana, Director Kennedy Space Center, center, Thursday, July 6, 2017.Credit: TNS via Getty ImagesSEE ALSO:Elon Musk wants your trip to Mars to be like a Carnival cruise。

Naturally, VP's blatant disregard for laminated signs became the meme du jour and the inspiration for a Reddit Photoshop battle. 。

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Tweet may have been deleted。Tweet may have been deleted 。Credit: Reddit, porkchopsandwhiches 。Credit: reddit, franticunravel。

Credit: reddit, epace。 Credit: reddit, lokibartleby。

Update, Friday, July 7, 3:36 P.M. ET:。

On Friday, NASA issued a statement addressing the photo: 。"The 'do not touch' signs are there as a day-to-day reminder, including the one visible on the titanium Forward Bay Cover for the Orion spacecraft. Procedures require the hardware to be cleaned before tiles are bonded to the spacecraft, so touching the surface is okay. Otherwise, the hardware would have had a protective cover over it like the thermal heat shield, which was nearby."。

Update, Friday, July 7, 3:43 P.M. ET: 。

Update, Friday, July 7, 3:43 P.M. ET:
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Annnnnd, now VP's chiming in: 。

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[H/T: Gizmodo]。

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