Why did the author join Al-Anon as noted in the nonfiction book, Al Franken, Giant of the Senate?

Though he was fortunate enough to not struggle with addiction himself, Franken's experiences with loved ones taught him that "addiction can take an unimaginable toll on the people who love addicts" (36). Prompted by the overwhelming confusion and uncertainty in Franken's life cause by his best friend Tom's and his wife Franni's struggles with chemical addiction, he joined Al-Anon, "a twelve-step program for family members and friends of alcoholics based on the principles of AA" (34). The program taught him how to listen to others more carefully and forced him to complete a "searching and fearless moral inventory" of himself, which he jests "removed all of [his] character defects, making [him] the most well-adjusted senator in the history of the body" (35, 36). Playful sarcasm aside, Franken attributes his ability to overcome his flaws to support his wife and best friend to Al-Anon.