SPRINGFIELD, Ill. ? Iraq war veteran L. Tammy Duckworth, a helicopter pilot who lost her legs to a rocket-propelled grenade attack, formally announced her candidacy Sunday in Lombard for the congressional seat of retiring Republican Rep. Henry Hyde.

The Army major is one of about a half-dozen Iraq war veterans running for office as Democrats, lending their military backgrounds to the party’s argument that it can be strong on defense and national security, even as its leaders criticize President Bush’s handling of the war.

Duckworth says she wants to focus on health care, education and the economy in her campaign, though she knows the war will be a big issue.

She privately disagreed with Bush’s decision to invade Iraq, but still volunteered to serve. “We should have been fighting the enemies that attacked us at home on 9-11,” Duckworth told ABC’s “This Week” on Sunday. “We should have been out there trying to catch Osama bin Laden.”