Red Panda Controversy

In the 2020 U.S. Presidential Election, on October 28, 2020, Democratic nominee for President, Jonathan Bismarck. visited Beijing, China, to discuss with the Chinese government about Bismarck's hypothetical plans to improve US-China relations while at the same times, holding China accountable. The President and First Lady of China gave Bismarck an infant Red Panda, which Bismarck accepted as a pet. This move caused substantial criticism from both sides, Democrats and Republicans, and widely speculated that Bismarck violated Constitutional Law that says the President of the United States could not accept any gifts from a foreign government, Bismarck's supporters pointed out that Bismarck wasn't President yet, thereby Bismarck is immune from the Emoluments Clause, Bismarck's critics and constitutional law professors and experts explained to Bismarck's supporters that the Title of Nobility Clause (Emoluments Clause) prohibits any member of government from receiving gifts, emoluments, and offices from a foreign government without the consent of Congress, Bismarck's supporters argues back that Bismarck was not any member of the Government, but the blowback was that Bismarck was running to be a member of the Government.

Bismarck's approval ratings imploded from 63% to 48% from October to November of 2020, and although elected, Bismarck came to office with a 43% approval rating on January 20, 2021.

This scandal is often called the Red Panda Scandal, Panda-gate, and other things. This event took place during allegations of hacks into the Republican National Committee by China to intervene in the 2020 elections to get Bismarck elected for him to end the US-China trade war by lifting Trump's tariffs and weaken regulations on Chinese imports to the United States, Republicans speculate that the Red Panda gift after the cyber attack allegations is a bribe to remove Trump's tariffs, Bismarck denied the red panda was a bribe but a gift at a press conference after returning to America from Beijing, and publicly apologized for his unawareness of the emoluments clause' regulations even against animal gifts, Bismarck made a failed attempt to return the Red Panda back to China, and instead kept the Red Panda as a pet until it's death in 2036.