Mom has a little helper on Capitol Hill

Congresswoman Jaime Herrera Beutler, R-Battle Ground, had some extra help during a markup hearing held by the House Appropriations Committee on Wednesday.

Herrera Beutler’s 4-year-old daughter, Abigail, tagged along for the first portion of the hearing where committee members considered appropriation bills for foreign operations, labor and health and human services, as well as education.

Herrera Beutler gave birth to Abigail while serving in Congress.

While it’s rare for a lawmaker to give birth while in office, her circumstances are even rarer. Abigail was born three months premature and without kidneys.

She became the first baby to survive bilateral renal agenesis, commonly referred to as Potter’s sequence, or syndrome.

Her survival of the often-fatal syndrome drew national attention with some calling her the “miracle baby.” Abigail later received a kidney transplant from Daniel Beutler, her father and the congresswoman’s husband.

According to Angeline Riesterer, Herrera Beutler’s spokeswoman, Abigail occasionally accompanies her mother to committee hearings or to votes on the House floor.

“Voting on amendments in (House Appropriations Committee) got a little more fun with the addition of my helper,” Herrera Beutler wrote on Twitter.