Sandra Day O'Connor

Sandra Day O'Connor

27 quotes

The American lawyer, politician and judge Sandra Day O'Connor is someone whose pithy observations have become part of everyday conversation. With equal ease, Sandra Day O'Connor moved between Government and Education, finding connections others missed. 34 of Sandra Day O'Connor's sharpest quotes live here, spanning themes of Government, Education, Politics, Alone, and Women. Among their most shared lines: "A state of war is not a blank check... when it comes to the rights of the Nation's citizens."

“Despite the encouraging and wonderful gains and the changes for women which have occurred in my lifetime, there is still room to advance and to promote correction of the remaining deficiencies and imbalances.”

— Sandra Day O'Connor

Women

All Quotes by Sandra Day O'Connor

“We don't accomplish anything in this world alone... and whatever happens is the result of the whole tapestry of one's life and all the weavings of individual threads form one to another that creates something.”

— Sandra Day O'Connor

Alone

“My hope is that 10 years from now, after I've been across the street at work for a while, they'll all be glad they gave me that wonderful vote.”

— Sandra Day O'Connor

Hope

“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.”

— Sandra Day O'Connor

Respect

“Despite the encouraging and wonderful gains and the changes for women which have occurred in my lifetime, there is still room to advance and to promote correction of the remaining deficiencies and imbalances.”

— Sandra Day O'Connor

Women

“In order to cultivate a set of leaders with legitimacy in the eyes of the citizenry, it is necessary that the path to leadership be visibly open to talented and qualified individuals of every race and ethnicity.”

— Sandra Day O'Connor

Leadership

“Each of us brings to our job, whatever it is, our lifetime of experience and our values.”

— Sandra Day O'Connor

Experience

“Young women today often have very little appreciation for the real battles that took place to get women where they are today in this country. I don't know how much history young women today know about those battles.”

— Sandra Day O'Connor

History

“A state of war is not a blank check... when it comes to the rights of the Nation's citizens.”

— Sandra Day O'Connor

War

“Parents should continue to become more involved with their communities, and more involved in their children's education.”

— Sandra Day O'Connor

Education

“The freedom to criticize judges and other public officials is necessary to a vibrant democracy. The problem comes when healthy criticism is replaced with more destructive intimidation and sanctions.”

— Sandra Day O'Connor

Freedom

“It is a measure of the framers' fear that a passing majority might find it expedient to compromise 4th Amendment values that these values were embodied in the Constitution itself.”

— Sandra Day O'Connor

Fear

“Half the states have stopped making civics and government a requirement for high school. Half.”

— Sandra Day O'Connor

Government

“Statutes authorizing unreasonable searches were the core concern of the framers of the 4th Amendment.”

— Sandra Day O'Connor

History

“The framers of the Constitution were so clear in the federalist papers and elsewhere that they felt an independent judiciary was critical to the success of the nation.”

— Sandra Day O'Connor

Success

“Yes, I will bring the understanding of a woman to the Court, but I doubt that alone will affect my decisions.”

— Sandra Day O'Connor

Alone

“The Establishment Clause prohibits government from making adherence to a religion relevant in any way to a person's standing in the political community.”

— Sandra Day O'Connor

Government

“It is difficult to discern a serious threat to religious liberty from a room of silent, thoughtful schoolchildren.”

— Sandra Day O'Connor

Politics

“The No Child Left Behind Program was an incentive to the schools to get their kids up to snuff on math and science and reading.”

— Sandra Day O'Connor

Science

“I had become increasingly concerned in recent years about the lack of civics education in our nation's schools. In recent years, the schools have stopped teaching it. And it's unfortunate.”

— Sandra Day O'Connor

Education

“You have citizens who don't understand how government works and they're kind of soured on it. All they do is criticize. They have no idea that they can make things happen.”

— Sandra Day O'Connor

Government