3-Child Limit Proposal In PA: Newt Gingrich, Others React

PENNSYLVANIA — In the week following the announcement of his "parody" legislation in the Pennsylvania House of Representatives which would restrict the number of children a man could father, State Rep. Chris Rabb has stewed plenty of controversy. And that's exactly the point, he says.

Among those who have chimed in response to the bill was former U.S. Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich.

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"More far left insanity," Gingrich wrote on Twitter. "A Democrat State Senator from Pennsylvania has introduced a new bill seeking to punish 'cisgender men'..."

Rabb himself directly replied to Gingrich, writing, "Your sister-in-law @RepKellyCassidy partly inspired me, Newty! #SnipSnip," adding a scissors emoji at the end of the message.

>>3-Child Limit Bill Proposed In PA; Would Mandate Vasectomies

Rabb was referring to similar parody legislation introduced in Illinois by Cassidy (who is married to Gingrich's half-sister Candace).

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Rabb's proposal, announced in a co-sponsorship memorandum to his colleagues entitled "Enforcing reproductive responsibility among men," was designed as a satire to raise awareness of the restrictive anti-abortion bills gaining traction in places like Texas and Alabama. In addition to a three-child limit for men, the bill calls for mandated vasectomies at age 40 or after the third child, whichever comes first. In addition, the legislation would include a $10,000 reward for reporting any violators who refuse to get vasectomies.

In announcing the bill, Rabb said he hoped it would expose "gendered double standards" for reproductive rights. He further elaborated on his satirical approach in a social media post last week, saying that the bill "(highlights) how Rs waste millions of taxpayer $$$ loading up our docket with bills to further restrict the bodily autonomy of women knowing full well @GovernorTomWolf will veto every single one of them!"

Beyond a response from a national figure in Gingrich, Rabb has seen his proposal receive the full treatment from famous fact checkers over at Snopes.com and PolitiFact, both of which saw fit to clarify the bill as satire. Elsewhere, conservative outlets like the American Advocacy Group had shared news of the bill without explaining its intent as parody of the Texas law.

The bill has not been formally introduced in the Pennsylvania legislature, but Rabb told PolitiFact that it will be, reportedly acknowledging that "it has no chance of passing."