U.S. Rep. Jared Polis owes the Republican delegation thanks for their vote against dismantling the Office of Congressional Ethics, which GOP party leaders abandoned after Trump weighed in and shamed them for the attempt.
That office, as PeakNation™ will recall, is the same entity that investigated Polis back in 2015 for appearing in a video game commercial and that makeover by a menswear company.
Polis could have violated federal laws and ethics rules, but the office let Polis off the hook because they determined that he didn’t know any better. In hindsight, they must have also realized that the makeover was worthless.
The initial report by the Office of Congressional Ethics (OCE) recommending that Polis be investigated suggested that what Polis did was in fact a violation of House Rules, whether he realized it or not. Here’s why:
OCE found that there was a substantial reason to believe that Rep. Polis engaged in activities that could be perceived as endorsements of Riot Games and Ninox and that he used official resources in promoting the businesses in violation of federal law and House Rules.
Polis didn’t have any public statements yesterday like other Democrats, who used the opportunity to shame Republicans. Perhaps he was busy writing that Thank You note.