A white elephant throws a red herring up the wrong tree and opens Pandora's box. Will there be an open can of worms inside of it?

Nope, just spilt milk.

  It certainly gives a black eye to the lily white Russians who worked their green thumbs to the bone just to stop the yellow journalism of the blue period when the purple gang initiated a preplanned brownout of the major cities along the red horde’s path and blocked the khaki-clad industrialists who were assured victory if only they could garner support from the think tank of grey matter that was marooned nearby. 

~

Either that or the whole ball of wax.

Given the woes that escape into the world when a Pandora's box falls open, maybe not.

I can picture a fisherman spilling his live worms. They writhe. It takes him patience and care to pick up each one without damaging it. Maybe birds swoop down and steal a few. It takes him so long that the tide turns and he misses his best opportunity for catching fish that day. Maybe his family goes without a meal that night. Maybe they fall on a hard surface and all are caught, having to wait for at least another 24 hours before the fisher pierces them with a hook and throws them out on a line. Maybe the worms are lucky, falling on rich, damp, loose soil and many wriggle down and escape. 

By the rarity of their colour, the occupants of a living room would have a harder time ignoring a white elephant.
Since a red herring could provoke lurid debate, breaking with all protocols and tact, it could conceivably open Pandora's box. That could be a lot worse than wriggly worms.