In January, I met a wounded vet with severe post traumatic stress disorder, or PTSD, at an Inaugural event in Washington. Luis Montalvan had been an Army intelligence officer in 2003, when he was gravely wounded in Anbar Province. When I met Luis, he was walking with a cane and accompanied by his service dog, a beautiful golden retriever named Tuesday. Luis told me that without Tuesday he couldn’t have made it to the event.

Tuesday can anticipate Luis’s panic attacks by changes in his breathing or perspiration and then avert them by nuzzling Luis and calming him down. Tuesday reminds his master to take his medications. He can wake Luis from debilitating dreams. After hearing about all that Tuesday does for Luis, not the least of which is elevating his sense of well-being, I made it my business to learn everything I could about service dogs and veterans.

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WASHINGTON – Franni Franken pauses during her lunch at a Mexican restaurant on Capitol Hill to extract a green flash drive from her purse.

“This is my homework,” she says, as she twirls around the tiny digital memory device that holds a research report on youth rehabilitation. It is a reference to a nightly ritual with her husband, Sen. Al Franken, called “homework time,” when the two stop what they are doing to sit side by side in their living room perusing legislation, research reports, voting records and news clips.

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Sen. Al Franken, D-Minn., is pushing for the inclusion of a measure in the health-care reform legislation that would standardize the forms that are used for administrative transactions between health care providers, payers, intermediaries and vendors.

“Doctors and nurses should spend their time and resources dealing with patients, not paperwork,” Franken said in statement. “I’m proud that Minnesota has been a leader in simplifying administrative processes. If the nation follows our example, we can save this country billions.”

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Meanwhile, Minnesota’s junior Sen. Al Franken, who has been an adamant supporter of a government-run public insurance option, said today that he would back Reid’s proposal, which would give states the choice to opt out of offering the plan.

“I think it is probably a good compromise so that states that want to opt out can opt out,” said the Democrat, who added that he would still prefer a public option like the kind being discussed in the House that does not include an “opt-out” provision.

“I would prefer the [choice] of a public option for everyone,” Franken said. “This is like an option option.”

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The final version of a health care reform plan is starting to take shape in Washington and members of Minnesota’s Congressional delegation are weighing in on where they stand.

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid said on Monday the Senate bill will include a government-run public health insurance option, but would allow states to opt out of participating. All of Minnesota’s Republican representatives say they oppose that plan, and at least one Democrat said he’s skeptical it doesn’t go far enough.

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U.S Senator Al Franken is celebrating the passage of his first piece of legislation in the senate.

The new service dogs of veterans act will allow veterans to receive some much-needed help from 4-legged friends.

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In some cases, a good first floor speech, regardless of when it is delivered, can help put a new Member on the radar of senior legislators. For example, Sen. Al Franken (D-Minn.) gave his maiden speech on Aug. 6, a month after he was sworn in, and used it to endorse Supreme Court nominee Sonia Sotomayor.

“The timing of when you do a first floor speech is pretty important,” Franken said. “And this one was necessary because I’m a member of the Judiciary Committee and a Supreme Court nomination is a huge deal.”

Franken prepared for the speech by rehearsing alone and in front of his staff. When the big day arrived, his family came to watch.

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Franken, DFL-Minn., last month signed onto a bill authored by Sen. Blanche Lincoln, D-Ark., which would train, place and retrain school counselors, school social workers and school psychologists in school districts that need them.

“Minnesota students deserve personal attention from school counselors,” says Franken. “On everything from choosing the right college to dealing with social issues affecting their performance, our kids need a professional to talk to within their school.”

Experts have shown that social, emotional and behavioral issues interfere with children’s’ ability to succeed in school. Without adequately staffed student support services, teachers are given the burden of working with kids’ social and behavioral problems as well as academic issues.

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Sen. Al Franken’s first piece of legislation is just a presidential signature away from becoming law.

The Minnesota Democrat’s Service Dogs for Veterans Act was a part of the Defense Authorization bill voted on by Congress on Thursday. The House and Senate both approved the measure. It now heads to President Barack Obama’s desk.

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