GQ Says Colo. Congressman Needs Emergency Fashion Makeover

(C-SPAN)

When Rep. Jared Polis, D-Colo., walks into the U.S. Capitol for work every day, he faces the usual onslaught of partisan bickering and legislative wrangling.

This week, he suffered an indignity of a totally different kind.

When the Colorado congressman strode onto the floor of the House of Representatives to deliver a speech on the Unlocking Consumer Choice and Wireless Competition Act, his silver bow tie and bright purple golf polo shirt caught the unexpected - and unflattering - attention of the fashion gurus at GQ Magazine.

"Worst Congressional Style Ever? Yeah, Probably," bellowed the headline of a blog post by GQ associate editor Dennis Tang.

"Am I having a seizure? Can someone make it stop?" Tang wrote. "Okay. Calm. Breath …. Jared. It's fine. We can help. You should let us help you."

It wasn't long before the congressman accepted the magazine's offer. Recognizing the fashion faux pas, Polis tweeted:

The outfit "was a bit of a fashion misfire," Polis admitted.

In a follow-up interview with ABC News, Polis said it wasn't clear exactly what kind of help GQ plans to offer him.

"But if they'll allow some degree of creativity," he said. "I'm happy to take fashion advice from the definitive source in men's fashion."

Of course, even he has limits, saying he won't let the New York fashionistas "transform me into looking like a Wall Street banker."

Polis said he never wears ties when he's in his own home district in central Colorado, but he has donned a bow tie several times in the past month.

"There's only so much you can do with a shirt and tie," he joked. "Bow ties and cravats offer creativity."

A day after the offer from GQ, Polis was spotted wearing an even more bizarre ensemble: a pink polo shirt, polka-dotted maroon bow tie, army green vest and khaki blazer. This morning, he picked out a gray polo with a white collar, gray vest, dark gray blazer and a checkered bow tie.

Asked to describe his style in one word, Polis said, "Evolving."

However, if you're waiting for Polis to make Vanity Fair's best dressed list, "you might have to wait a while," he conceded.