• last year
Members of the Arizona Delegation honored and led a moment of silence for former Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O'Connor on the House floor.
Transcript
00:00 The House will be in order. For what purpose does the gentleman from Stanton of Arizona seek the floor?
00:10 Mr. Speaker, I ask to address the House out of order.
00:16 The House will be in order.
00:24 Without objection, the gentleman is recognized.
00:29 Mr. Speaker, this morning we lost one of our greatest Americans.
00:37 And today I rise, along with my colleagues representing all of Arizona, Republicans and Democrats alike,
00:48 to honor the life and legacy of the most influential Arizonan in history,
00:56 Justice Sandra Day O'Connor, who passed away this morning at the age of 93.
01:05 Justice O'Connor spent her life breaking down barriers in pursuit of a more just society.
01:14 She blazed every trail she set foot on,
01:19 defying the odds stacked against women in the legal profession to rise to become Arizona's Assistant Attorney General,
01:28 our first female majority leader in the state Senate,
01:32 a Maricopa County Superior Court judge,
01:35 and ultimately the first female justice on the United States Supreme Court.
01:43 She brought her Arizona brand of pragmatism and independence with her to the Supreme Court
01:49 and was often the swing vote on deeply consequential decisions.
01:55 In the years since her retirement from the Supreme Court,
01:58 I've admired her steadfast commitment to preserving our democracy
02:03 through objective, fact-based, and collaborative civil discourse,
02:09 through her creation of the Sandra Day O'Connor Institute,
02:13 and of course through the Sandra Day O'Connor College of Law at Arizona State University.
02:19 Her work will inspire future generations to follow her example
02:24 to become engaged and thoughtful civil participants.
02:29 And with that, I want to yield time to my colleague, Representative Debbie Lesko.
02:35 Thank you, Greg.
02:36 And thank you, colleagues, for standing in respect of a great woman.
02:41 Not only a great woman for Arizona,
02:45 but a great woman and trailblazer for all of American and all women across America.
02:53 As was said, she was the first woman majority leader to serve in the Arizona Senate.
02:59 She went on to be the first woman to serve as a Supreme Court justice.
03:05 She stood up for truth.
03:07 She stood up for justice.
03:10 She's not only a wonderful woman and a representative of Arizona,
03:15 but a wonderful American.
03:18 And we are saddened by her passing, but she set the trail for all of us women.
03:24 She was a great Republican, a great American, and we praise her each and every day.
03:34 With that, I ask the House to join me in a moment of silence.
03:53 Mr. Speaker, I yield back.
03:55 [applause]

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