New Issue of American Veteran Magazine Available Now

The latest issue of American Veteran magazine has shipped to subscribers around the country and will be available online this week.

In this spring's Outside the Wire, we sat down with comedian and Minnesota junior Senator Al Franken. Franken, who has visited troops serving in harm's way nearly every year since 1999 was elected to the Senate in 2008. After being seated, his first piece of legislation centered on caring for today's veterans and he continues to be a critical voice on issues affecting America's heroes.

This spring we also highlight the recent HBO miniseries "The Pacific," which chronicled the experiences of the Marines who served in the Pacific theatre of WWII. The miniseries, produced by Tom Hanks and Steven Spielberg, follows a similar format as the 2001 "Band of Brothers" miniseries and is the latest Hanks/Spielberg collaboration to preserve the storied history of America's Greatest Generation.

In this issue we also discuss new Pentagon programs designed to help veterans reintegrate from combat life. In light of daunting suicide and unemployment statistics among today's veterans, AMVETS made reintegration one of its top legislative priorities for 2010, and American Veteran was able to speak with military leaders tasked to assist today's veterans in the transition--specifically Army's Yellow Ribbon Program and the post-deployment health reassessment, or PDHRA.

AMVETS National Legislative Director also discusses the upcoming AMVETS Symposium for 21st Century Veterans, and we hear from Denise Anderson, the Gold Star mother of Army Spc. Corey Shea, who was killed in Iraq in 2008. Anderson is calling on VA to allow her to be buried with her son.

Finally, we also discuss the recent signing of the Caregivers and Veterans Omnibus Health Service Act, which offers unprecedented benefits to family caregivers for today's wounded warriors and establishes new programs for underserved veteran communities. We also discuss the goings-on at AMVETS posts and departments around the country, including the Gold Star license plates and Spirit of '45 campaigns in California.

Be on the look-out for the latest issue of American Veteran magazine in your mailboxes today, and, as always, let us know what you think.

(Photos: Top: Sen. Al Franken (D-Minn.) pets Tuesday, AMVETS member Luis Montalvan's service dog during a meeting on Capitol Hill with AMVETS to discuss veterans' service dog legislation. Photo by Ryan Gallucci. Middle: Tom Hanks addresses hundreds of Pacific Campaign veterans at the National WWII Memorial during a recent Honor Flight visit hosted by HBO in honor of the Hanks/Spielberg miniseries "The Pacific." Photo by Ryan Gallucci. Bottom: President Barack Obama signs the veterans' caregiver bill at the White House, while AMVETS Executive Director Jim King and other leading veterans' advocates look on. Photo courtesy of the White House.)