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Honoring Justice Sandra Day O'Connor

Date: March 1, 2006
Location: Washington, DC
Issues: Judicial Branch


HONORING JUSTICE SANDRA DAY O'CONNOR -- (House of Representatives - March 01, 2006)

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Mrs. SCHMIDT. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of House Resolution 357, honoring former United States Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O'Connor and commend my colleague from Florida, Ms. Ginny Brown-Waite, for her work on this legislation and Chairman Sensenbrenner for allowing this to go through.

In 1981, when Sandra Day O'Connor was unanimously confirmed to the seat previously held by my fellow Cincinnatian, Justice Potter Stewart, as the first woman Justice, it was a very different time in America. After 24 years serving our Nation, it can be said that her legacy is multifaceted: one of the most influential Justices in history; certainly one of the most powerful women in America; and a pioneer in every sense of the word.

We know she was born in El Paso to parents who owned a 198,000-acre cattle ranch in southeastern Arizona. There she learned roping and riding but also the self-reliance and determination that influenced her life. Despite her many achievements at Stanford and Stanford Law School, law review, graduating in 2 years instead of three, and third in her class of 120, no law firm would hire her because she was a woman. She turned to public service and was Arizona's assistant attorney general, the first woman majority leader of the State senate, a trial judge and an Arizona court of appeals judge before being named to the United States Supreme Court. Maybe it is good no law firm would hire her.

Although I have not always agreed with her on every decision, Justice O'Connor stood for federalism, pragmatism, compromise and interpreting, not legislating, the law. She considered each case individually on its own merits. Her hallmarks of integrity, diligence, and fairness have been woven through every task she has undertaken.

Balancing the demands of a career and family, Justice O'Connor set a positive example for women, especially young women. She once said, ``Society as a whole benefits immeasurably from a climate in which all persons, regardless of race or gender, may have the opportunity to earn respect, responsibility, advancement and remuneration based on ability.''

During Women's History Month, it is especially fitting that we honor her.

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