Photo: Chris Steller

Al Franken’s first bill in the U.S. Senate passed unanimously — kinda. His plan for a pilot project to provide service dogs to disabled veterans got tacked onto by unanimous consent to the Defense Authorization, which passed the Senate by a 87-7 vote last night. All with no apparent fanfare from the former showman. 

The program envisioned by the Franken-Isakson Service Dogs for Veterans Act still must survive a conference committee before it goes to the White House for President Obama’s signature.

Franken pushed his first piece of legislation through without making a floor speech either last night or days earlier at its introduction. ”No hoopla at all,” according to spokeswoman Jess McIntosh. “[A] staffer filed the papers,” she told the Minnesota Independent.

Sen. Johnny Isakson (R-Ga.) joined Franken in introducing the bill. Other co-sponsors included Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), Mary Landrieu (D-La.), Mark Begich (D-Ak.), Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio), and John Ensign (R-Nev.).

But the idea was really Franken’s, a product of the long months he waited to be seated, according to McIntosh in an email sent hours before the Senate passed the legislation:

He authored it himself – this was something he was thinking a lot about during the election contest, so he was ready with the idea when he was sworn in. Sen. Isakson was really receptive to the idea and became the lead co-sponsor, and more senators are signing on every day, so things are really moving.

The Fix’s Chris Cillizza sizes up the situation this way:

Right off the bat I would say the elimination (or close to it) of Ensign and Sanford as 2012 candidate helps candidates like Romney, Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty and Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin as it effectively narrows the field and creates more oxygen — in the press, in money circles, in the talent race — for them.

Columnist Nick Coleman saw a Pawlenty angle too, with the Mrs. in mind, in a Twitter message:

Fortunately, our MN governors are known to have “smoking hot” wives, if they say so themselves. No Argentinian firecrackers need apply.