The Senate Veterans' Affairs Committee today unanimously approved the nomination of Tammy Duckworth to a top post in the Department of Veterans Affairs.

Duckworth will serve as Assistant Secretary for Public and Intergovernmental Affairs.

"I am pleased my colleagues confirmed Major Duckworth unanimously," said U.S. Sen. Daniel Akaka, who chairs the committee.

"More than three months after taking office, Secretary (Eric) Shinseki now has his first confirmed assistant secretary.

"As VA's new public face and intergovernmental liaison, Tammy can begin the long and hard work of improving the department's reputation and relations across the country. I look forward to working with her."

Duckworth, a McKinley High and University of Hawaii-Manoa graduate, was nominated by President Barack Obama.

She previously was director of the Illinois State Department of Veterans Affairs.

As a helicopter pilot with the Illinois National Guard, Duckworth was deployed to Iraq in 2004, where she lost both legs when her Black Hawk was hit by a rocket-propelled grenade.