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Rachel Campos Duffy, the wife of Wisconsin Congressman Sean Duffy, is an Arizona native who met Duffy when they both starred on seasons of the television show “The Real World.” She’s a Fox News contributor and author.
Campos-Duffy was on the show’s third season, in San Francisco, and Sean Duffy was on season six in Boston.
Duffy has now announced that he is resigning from the seat in Congress that he’s held since 2010, citing family reasons.
Duffy, a Republican, confirmed the news himself, writing on Facebook on August 26, 2019:
“Next to marrying Rachel, representing you – the people and families of Wisconsin’s 7th District – in Congress has been the highest honor of my life. Together, we have engaged in the most important battles of our time: protecting freedom of speech and religious liberty, taking care of our veterans, defending the unborn, and saving American jobs and American capitalism.
After eight and a half years, the time has come for me to focus more on the reason we fight these battles – family.”
Here’s what you need to know
1. Duffy & His Wife Have Eight Children Together & She Calls Him the ‘Hottest Hubby’
GettySean Duffy is resigning
Duffy and his wife, Rachel Campos-Duffy, 47, have eight children with one on the way. Their children are Evita, Jack, Lucia-Belen, John-Paul, Paloma, Maria Victoria, Margarita, and Patrick Miguel. Campos Duffy’s Instagram profile reads, “Author, FOX News Contributor, Wife of hottest hubby, proud Mom of 8.”
Rachel, a Fox News contributor, explained to National Review what it’s like to have so many kids. “We didn’t plan one of my kids; they just kind of happened. So I’ve just kind of taken each one as a blessing sent to me by God. To be honest, this last one was kind of a surprise. I thought I was getting a little old. But apparently not!” she said to National Review.
Campos-Duffy told the conservative site that people called her an environmental terrorist and made misogynistic comments when she announced she was pregnant with kid number 9. She added: “…there are a lot of beautiful things that happen in large families…friendships are formed among siblings…I always tell my kids there’s some wonderful things about being in a big family and there’s some drawbacks. And hopefully they’re experiencing more of the good parts about having a big family.”
She explained that faith grounds her parenting and marriage, telling National Review: “My motto as a parent has always been that my job isn’t to get you into Harvard, it’s to get you into Heaven.”
She wrote on Instagram that she was expecting the couple’s 9th child, writing, “Buckingham Palace isn’t the only one with big baby news …we found out God isn’t done with our family yet. Baby #9 coming this fall! Don’t tell us we’re crazy. We prefer brave and full of hope for America’s future!”
Rachel gushes about her husband on Instagram, writing, “I told you on one of our first dates that I was going to marry you & you thought I was cray-cray. 20 years later here we are – and I still think you are the hottest man in any room. Thanks for marrying me, loving me, embracing my crazy, and giving me all these babies. Happy Anniversary, Seandog!!!”
2. Sean Duffy Wrote That He Wants to Focus on Family Because the Couple’s New Baby Has Heart Issues
Duffy’s resignation statement on Facebook cited family as the reason he is quitting Congress. His large brood with wife Rachel has often been featured in campaign materials. He had been a rising star in Wisconsin sometimes mentioned as a possible Republican gubernatorial candidate.
“As you all know, raising a family is hard work. It’s especially true for one as large and busy as mine. Being away from home in Washington four days a week is challenging and for that reason, I have always been open to signs from God when it comes to balancing my desire to serve both my family and my country,” Duffy continued in the resignation statement.
“Recently, we’ve learned that our baby, due in late October, will need even more love, time, and attention due to complications, including a heart condition. With much prayer, I have decided that this is the right time for me to take a break from public service in order to be the support my wife, baby and family need right now. It is not an easy decision – because I truly love being your Congressman – but it is the right decision for my family, which is my first love and responsibility.
On September 23, I will step down and allow others to step forward to begin laying out their own vision and plans for leading this beautiful district and the most honest, hard-working, family-oriented, patriotic, and God-fearing constituents in America.
I will be forever grateful for and humbled by the faith and sacred trust you have put in me all these years. I am especially grateful for the prayers said on behalf of our family. We hope they keep coming! I will miss being your Congressman, but I am also looking forward to having more time with my family, being home for more birthdays and hockey games, and having time to enjoy and care for our new baby girl, who is already so loved by our family.
A special thank you to my chief of staff, Pete Meachum, my district director, Jesse Garza, and the rest of my loyal and competent district & DC staff. They are the reason you have enjoyed the best and most attentive customer service this district has ever had to resolve your federal issues and problems. I am so proud of what they do and have full confidence they will continue to seamlessly provide these valuable services during the coming transition.”
Here’s the post:
Duffy’s district, anchored in northern Wisconsin, is solidly Republican. Donald Trump won the district by 21 points in 2016 in one of the key rust belt battleground states that Trump flipped to win the election that year. There hadn’t been any hints before that Duffy was considering resigning.
3. Sean Duffy Met His Wife Through the Real World Television Show
Sean Duffy often played up his lumberjack roots. According to his biography, “Congressman Sean Duffy was born and raised in Hayward, Wisconsin. His great, great grandfather was one of the state’s early pioneers and a laborer for the Northwestern Lumber Company. His great grandfather, one of Hayward’s founding settlers, was a sawyer for 27 years.”
The bio explains that Duffy was a “nationally recognized professional lumberjack athlete. He is a two-time world champion in the 90-foot speed climb, three-time champion in the 60-foot and an accomplished log-roller.” Duffy was one of 11 siblings.
According to the bio, he worked his way through law school, becoming an elected district attorney in northern Wisconsin. He met his wife Rachel Campos-Duffy, who is from Arizona, through the MTV show, “The Real World,” although they were on different seasons of it.
4. Rachel Campos-Duffy Was a Stay-at-Home Mom Who Became a Writer Before Joining Fox
The National Review article reports that Rachel Campos-Duffy was a stay-at-home mother for 14 years. She told National Review that she wanted to help supplement the growing family’s income so she started writing and acting as a spokesperson for Libre Institute.
Then, she joined Fox as a contributor. “I do a lot of my television hits from a local TV studio in my hometown in Wisconsin. I travel to New York about twice a month, and I do some speeches as well,” she told National Review.
According to Young America’s Foundation, “Rachel is a published author, communications consultant, and television personality. She is a Fox News and Fox Business contributor and a recurring guest host on hit shows, Fox & Friends and Outnumbered, offering her unique view on public policy, parenting, and everything in between.”
Rachel “has also appeared as a frequent guest on NBC’s Today Show and ABC’s The View. In 2008, she co-hosted the series Speaking of Women’s Health on the Lifetime Network with the legendary Florence Henderson,” the bio reads, adding that the Libre Institute is “a non-profit group that advocates for the economic empowerment of Hispanics through limited government, entrepreneurship and self-reliance.”
5. Campos-Duffy Is the Author of a Children’s Book, Grew Up in a Military Family & Has a Master’s Degree in International Affairs
Campos-Duffy is the author of a children’s book called Paloma Wants to Be Lady Freedom (Regnery Kids, 2018). Her Young America’s Foundation biography says it “is a story about a little girl’s adventure inside the U.S. Capitol inspired by real life events where she learns about patriotism, courage, and her immigrant father’s journey to citizenship.”
“She has a bachelor’s degree in economics from Arizona State University’s Honors Program and a master’s degree in international affairs from the University of California, San Diego,” the bio reads.
According to IMDB, Campos Duffy “grew up in a military family. Rachel’s father, Miguel, was a CMSgt in the Air Force. Her mother Pili is from Spain. She graduated from Desert High School at Edwards AFB, CA in 1989. Rachel has 2 brothers, Joe and Patrick, and 1 sister, Leah.”
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