Sandra Day O'Connor Quotes

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

Do the best you can in every task, no matter how unimportant it may seem at the time. No one learns more about a problem than the person at the bottom.

I think the important thing about my appointment is not that I will decide cases as a woman, but that I am a woman who will get to decide cases.

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.

Unfortunately civility is hard to codify or legislate, but you know it when you see it. It's possible to disagree without being disagreeable.

We don't accomplish anything in this world alone.

Be aware that even before you have reached your ultimate professional destination, if you always strive for excellence, you can and should have a substantial impact on the world in which you live.

This chance will stand before you only once.

The power I exert on the court depends on the power of the power of my arguments, not my gender

We have a complex system of government. You have to teach it to every generation.

I don't know that there are any short cuts to doing a good job.

I have always thought that while it's wonderful to be the first to do something, you don't want to be the last.

As a citizen, you need to know how to be a part of it, how to express yourself - and not just by voting.

The proper role of the judiciary is one of interpreting and applying the law, not making it.

I think I learned to appreciate and treasure each day, because you don't know how many you're going to be given.

The destiny of the woman must be shaped to a large extent on her own conception of her spiritual imperative and her place in society.

A moment of silence is not inherently religious.

We pay a price when we deprive children of the exposure to the values, principles, and education they need to make them good citizens.

The family unit plays a critical role in our society and in the training of the generation to come.

Liberty finds no refuge in a jurisprudence of doubt.

Commitment to the rule of law provides a basic assurance that people can know what to expect whether what they do is popular or unpopular at the time.

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

I wanted to be a cattle rancher when I was young, because it was what I knew and I loved it.

The freedom to criticize judges and other public officials is necessary to a vibrant democracy.

The more education a woman has, the wider the gap between men's and women's earnings for the same work.

Having family responsibilities and concerns just has to make you a more understanding person.

I sort of thought the framers of the Constitution were talking about the rights of individuals, not corporate entities.

So how as a nation can we sit around and eat Mexican food, and drink beer and make friends? That's the question. If we can do that on a broader scale, I think we'll come out of it all right.

If I stumbled badly in doing the job, I think it would have made life more difficult for women, and that was a great concern of mine and still is.

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.

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

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

It's hard to have little children and a job and career at the same time. There is no time left for you as a woman.

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

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

The government now has license to transfer property from those with fewer resources to those with more. The Founders cannot have intended this perverse result.

It is true that as you have children, there are a good many months when you don't want to be working full-time. I agree that that's an issue.

Historically courts in this country have been insulated. We do not look beyond our borders for precedents.

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.

Slaying the dragon of delay is no sport for the short-winded.

Cyberspace undeniably reflects some form of geography.

There was no hostility at the court when I arrived.

If statistics are any indication, the system may well be allowing some innocent defendants to be executed.

Justice Ginsburg is a very competent justice, and it is a joy to have her on the court, but particularly for me it is a pleasure to have a second woman on the court.

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

My concern was whether I could do the job of a justice well enough to convince the nation that my appointment was the right move.

Most high courts in other nations do not have discretion, such as we enjoy, in selecting the cases that the high court reviews. Our court is virtually alone in the amount of discretion it has.

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.

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.

We expect that 25 years from now, the use of racial preferences will no longer be necessary to further the interest approved today.