| − | The Honorable '''Sandra Day O'Connor''' was the first woman [[Associate Justice]] ever appointed to the [[United States Supreme Court]]. A classmate and friend of then-Justice [[William Rehnquist]], O'Connor was appointed in 1981 by [[President of the United States|President]] [[Ronald Reagan]] to fulfill his campaign promise to appoint the first women to the [[U.S. Supreme Court]]. Justices O'Connor and Rehnquist then frequently joined each other's opinions, with Rehnquist often obtaining O'Connor's support on his conservative opinions,<ref>''See, e.g.'', [[Dale v. Boy Scouts]] (2000) and [[United States v. Morrison]] (2000)</ref> and sometimes O'Connor persuading Rehnquist to support her on a more [[liberal]] opinion.<ref>''See, e.g.'', the FLMA case{{fact}} and [[Troxel v. Granville]] (2000).</ref> | + | The Honorable '''Sandra Day O'Connor''' was the first woman [[Associate Justice]] ever appointed to the [[United States Supreme Court]]. A classmate and friend of then-Justice [[William Rehnquist]], O'Connor was appointed in 1981 by [[President of the United States|President]] [[Ronald Reagan]] to fulfill his campaign promise to appoint the first women to the [[U.S. Supreme Court]]. Justices O'Connor and Rehnquist then frequently joined each other's opinions, with Rehnquist often obtaining O'Connor's support on his conservative opinions,<ref>''See, e.g.'', [[Dale v. Boy Scouts]] (2000) and [[United States v. Morrison]] (2000)</ref> and sometimes O'Connor persuading Rehnquist to support her on a more [[liberal]] opinion.<ref>''See, e.g.'', the FLMA case{{fact}} and [[Troxel v. Granville]] (2000).</ref> Reagan did not bother to interview any other candidates for the job, thereby making almost no effort to nominate a real [[conservative]]. |
| − | Justice O'Connor, however, provided the pivotal 5th vote to the [[liberal]] wing of the Court in the important [[abortion]], [[affirmative action]], [[campaign finance]] and [[Establishment Clause]] cases. | + | Justice O'Connor then provided the pivotal 5th vote to the [[liberal]] wing of the Court in the important [[abortion]], [[affirmative action]], [[campaign finance]] and [[Establishment Clause]] cases. In October 2013, Justice O'Connor performed the second-ever homosexual marriage at the U.S. Supreme Court.<ref>https://www.lifesitenews.com/news/justices-oconnor-ginsburg-perform-same-sex-marriage-ceremonies-inside-supre</ref> |
| | Justice O'Connor retired in June 2006, and was eventually replaced on the bench by [[Samuel Alito]]. | | Justice O'Connor retired in June 2006, and was eventually replaced on the bench by [[Samuel Alito]]. |