The House Ethics Committee on Monday dismissed a complaint that U.S. Rep. Jared Polis last year used public resources to act as fleeting pitchman for a video game company and for a Boulder-based men’s clothing designer.

“I’m glad the ethics committee promptly and unanimously dismissed this matter and found no violation,” Polis said in a statement. “The activities — an interview I did for a website popular with gamers and a tongue-in-cheek press event lampooning my infamous fashion sense — reflect my ongoing efforts to creatively reach constituents where they are in a relevant manner.”

The committee reviewed a video interview Polis did with Riot Games and a style “makeover” photo shoot Polis did for menswear label Ninox.

“Representative Polis did not use official resources for a commercial purpose or violate House Rules regarding official endorsement of a commercial entity,” concluded the committee. “While it does appear that both the Riot Games video and the Ninox clothing event were intended, at least in part, to promote the businesses, this is true in virtually every instance in which a business participates in or arranges an event with a Member. Further, the video and clothing event also had clear and substantial non-commercial, representational, purposes.”

In the Riot Games video, Polis talks about being a first-generation gamer and how, as an adult, he plays video games to relax. In 2014, Reason magazine dubbed Polis the “gamer congressman.”

Ninox, a business in Polis’s 2nd Congressional District, reached out to him after GQ magazine dinged the Boulder Democrat for having the “worst congressional style ever.”

Reason asked Polis how gaming intersects with his political life.

Doesn’t really compare, said Polis. He mentioned the game Civilization 5, joking that “Here (in Congress), I don’t have any of the power I have in Civ 5, where I’m planning the entire civilization.”

The GQ post on Polis’s admittedly notorious fashion sense ran under an image of Polis on the House floor wearing a purplish polo shirt and a bow tie. The author of the post said he couldn’t believe what Polis was wearing. “Am I having a seizure?” he wondered.

Polis took a clearly relaxed, even entertained, approach to both of the promotional appearances reviewed by the ethics committee. He swiveled in his gaming chair in the Riot Games video. He posed absurdly like a fashion plate for Ninox at a park in Boulder.

After the shoot, Polis bought clothing from Ninox at full price and with his own money, the committee reported.

The committee cautioned members of Congress against taking a too-casual approach to such matters.

“Members should take care when participating in activities with outside entities. The Committee encourages all Members who are contemplating participating in events with commercial entities to contact the Committee with any questions they may have, and to exercise caution to avoid any appearance of an improper official endorsement or use of official resources for a commercial purpose.”

— john@coloradostatesman.com