December 11, 2019
Sandra Day O’Connor
Evan Thomas
Author and Journalist
in conversation with
Oscie Thomas
Legal Professional and
Frequent Collaborator with Her Husband on His Books
Michael Mathews, introducer, with Evan and Oscie Thomas
Minutes of the 13th Meeting of the 78th Year
President Julia Coale called the meeting to order at 10:15 AM. The invocation was led by Joan Fleming and the minutes for the previous meeting were read by Ralph Widner. There were 129 in attendance. Two members introduced guests as nominees: Lois Shindelman – Donald Barrack; George Bustin – Richard Lewandowski. Ten other guests were in attendance but were not introduced as Old Guard candidates. A moment of silence was observed in memory of Mosie Gates.
Michael Matthews introduced Evan Thomas and his wife, Oscie, to talk about their book, First: Sandra Day O'Connor. Although Evan, a well-known author and journalist, is listed as the author, the acknowledgements in the book and the ensuing conversation emphasized that Oscie was a major contributor as researcher, co-interviewer, and much more.
When Sandra Day O’Conner was nominated to be the first female Supreme Court justice by Ronald Reagan in 1981, her confirmation hearings drew more requests for press passes than did the Watergate hearings and attracted large TV audiences. She was confirmed by the Senate with a 99-0 vote. Despite the overwhelming support, she continued to be subjected to many of the slights aimed at women entering a man’s world.
Sandra Day O’Conner was not bitter, she did not let discrimination stop her from retaining her independence, she learned to deal with obnoxious men, and she often became a unifying force on the Supreme Court. The authors cited many examples of these characteristics. Here are a few:
Following their remarks, there was a wide-ranging Q&A session with questions covering: Bush v. Gore; Sandra Day O’Conner's relationship with Ruth Bader Ginsberg; and, whether there was a feminine approach to the law, a concept with which she disagreed.
Respectfully submitted,
Bill Wakefield
Michael Matthews introduced Evan Thomas and his wife, Oscie, to talk about their book, First: Sandra Day O'Connor. Although Evan, a well-known author and journalist, is listed as the author, the acknowledgements in the book and the ensuing conversation emphasized that Oscie was a major contributor as researcher, co-interviewer, and much more.
When Sandra Day O’Conner was nominated to be the first female Supreme Court justice by Ronald Reagan in 1981, her confirmation hearings drew more requests for press passes than did the Watergate hearings and attracted large TV audiences. She was confirmed by the Senate with a 99-0 vote. Despite the overwhelming support, she continued to be subjected to many of the slights aimed at women entering a man’s world.
Sandra Day O’Conner was not bitter, she did not let discrimination stop her from retaining her independence, she learned to deal with obnoxious men, and she often became a unifying force on the Supreme Court. The authors cited many examples of these characteristics. Here are a few:
- After graduating near the top of her class at Stanford Law School, she sent applications to 40 firms in Los Angeles and San Francisco. She received only one interview, and the first question to her was, “How well do you type?” Needless to say, she didn’t go to work there. About 30 years later, she was called by William French Smith, then Attorney General of the United States and a former partner in the law firm that had asked her about her typing speed. He called her to ask her to come to an interview with Ronald Reagan about a position on the Supreme Court. Her first response was, “You wouldn’t be calling me about secretarial work, would you?”
- When she served in the Arizona State Legislature, a nemesis of hers was a serious drunk, who impeded the work of the legislature. One day she confronted him about it and he said, “If you were a man, I’d punch you in the nose.” Her response was, “If you were a man, you could.”
- Just after her investiture, she was walking with Chief Justice Burger and he said to the attending press, “You’ve never seen me with a better looking judge.”
- She always had two male and two female clerks and did not use an ideological screen in their selection. She wanted to understand all sides of an issue. This helped lead her to be the swing vote on 330 cases in her 25 years on the Court.
- When Clarence Thomas joined the Court after his difficult confirmation hearings, he stayed to himself and sulked. Justice O'Connor finally talked him into attending lunch with the other justices. Judge Thomas told the authors that she was the glue and made the Court civil.
- She first learned to handle difficult and obnoxious men from watching her mother deal with her father, who routinely was a bully. At the same time, her father taught her the self-reliance that came from helping on their 160,000-acre ranch that had no electricity or running water.
Following their remarks, there was a wide-ranging Q&A session with questions covering: Bush v. Gore; Sandra Day O’Conner's relationship with Ruth Bader Ginsberg; and, whether there was a feminine approach to the law, a concept with which she disagreed.
Respectfully submitted,
Bill Wakefield