Las Vegas veteran to attend Obama speech

Dating back to Ronald Reagan, presidents have invited noteworthy Americans to attend the annual State of the Union speech, seating them in the gallery overlooking the U.S. House floor and sometimes singling them out for recognition.

For instance, last year President Barack Obama reserved a seat for Daniel Hernandez, the man who saved the life of Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, D-Ariz., after she was shot in a supermarket parking lot in her Tucson district.

Some members of Congress occasionally get in on the practice as well. Last January, Sen. Harry Reid, D-Nev., invited Timothy Hall, a U.S. Army specialist from Hawthorne who lost both legs in Afghanistan, to be his guest. Hall, of course, did not get a shout-out from the president, but did get to witness one of political Washington's signature events.

In that vein, Daniel Lee Meyer, a retired Air Force staff sergeant from Las Vegas who deployed to both Iraq and Afghanistan, has a ticket to Tuesday's State of the Union speech. The ticket came from Rep. Shelley Berkley, D-Nev.

Meyer, 27, served nearly six years in the service. He developed lung disease and tumors on his knees after being exposed to toxic smoke and chemicals while deployed, according to Berkley staffers, and was medically retired last October.

Berkley said she was happy to get Meyer into the speech, "so he can witness first hand this moment in America's history." He was accompanied to Washington by his wife Harmonie, who as of Monday night did not have a ticket.

In 2008, Reid invited Nevada's teacher of the year Melanie Teemant; Mesquite Mayor Susan Holecheck, Washoe County Sheriff Mike Haley; Pahrump Valley Chamber of Commerce CEO Kari Frilot and Army Lt. Jesse Tafoya.

Reid's office confirmed that Nevada state senator Ruben Kihuen, who is running for Congress in Las Vegas, will be one of his guests for Obama's speech on Tuesday.