Aussie Senator Larissa Waters Discreetly Breastfeeds In Senate Proceedings

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Australian Greens party Sen. Larissa Waters brought the Australian Parliament into the 21st century, breast-feeding her baby, Alia Joy, during a session in the Senate Chamber at Parliament House in Canberra. Alia Joy is the first baby to hold such a prestigious but core values honor. 

Her mum is Greens party co-deputy leader Larissa Waters, who returned to Parliament after giving birth to her second child a few weeks ago, according to The Sydney Morning Herald.

"The milestone comes after Senator Waters instigated changes to Senate rules last year, extending rules that already allowed breastfeeding in the chamber to allow new mums and dads to briefly care for their infants on the floor of parliament," The Australian reports. "The House of Representatives has made similar changes."

Waters is the first MP to take advantage of the new rules, and baby Alia Joy has a place in the history books of Australia. Can you imagine such an event in America's Congress? Hell will freeze over first. 

Merkel's Christian Democrats Have Strong Showing In Germany's Regional Election

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German Chancellor Angela Merkel surely was smiling today, learning the results of France's presidential election. But Merkel had an even more important reason to celebrate over the "stunning triumph", writes the LA Times, of her Christian Democrats over the ruling center-left Social Democrats in Schleswig-Holstein, home to 2.3 million voters and 400,000 dairy cows. The win gives Merkel's Christian Democrats much-needed momentum in advance of next Sunday's regional election in Germany's most populous state -- North Rhine-Westphalia, with 13 million voters. 

Germany is not worried presently about a Marine Le Pen-like, nationalist confrontation among German voters, but Merkel has been at risk to her "colorful, straight-talking, multilingual challenger Social Democrat Martin Schulz" in the Sept. 24 election where she is seeking a fourth four-year term. Merkel's Christian Democrats beat the Social Democrats in Schleswig-Holstein by a margin of 32.5% vs 27%. Next week will give Merkel a comprehensive view of where she stands, although four months is forever in today's world.