Sandra Day O'ConnorPerhaps no other jurist could have come to the Supreme Court with greater expectations. When President Ronald Reagan nominated Sandra Day O'Connor to be the first woman to sit on the Supreme Court in 1981, he did so to fulfill a campaign promise. O'Connor's appointment quickly drew criticism from both left-wing and right-wing politicians. Conservatives belittle his lack of federal judicial experience and argue he has no constitutional knowledge. They considered her a wasted appointment and were suspicious of her position on abortion. Liberals, on the other hand, could not deny their satisfaction at seeing a woman on the High Court, but were disappointed by O'Connor's apparent lack of strong support for feminist issues. Over time, however, O'Connor came to respond to all of these criticisms. O'Connor emerged from the shadow of Chief Justice William H. Rehnquist and the Court's conservative bloc with her brand of pragmatic, centrist conservatism. Even those liberals who in her early years labeled her a “traitor” for compromising abortion rights now appreciate her efforts to maintain the “pro-choice” message of Roe v. Wade in 1973. O'Connor's success should come as no surprise. From her childhood in the countryside to her career in a male-dominated profession, O'Connor often resorted to practical solutions while working within the system. This made her more important in the Supreme Court. Sandra Day O'Connor was born on March 26, 1930 in El Paso, Texas. His parents, Harry and Ada Mae, owned the Lazy-B-Cattle Ranch in southeastern Arizona, where O'Connor grew up. O'Connor lived a difficult life on the ranch in his early years. The ranch itself had no electricity or ru...middle of paper...is part of the conservative faction of the Court. The public often associated her with Rehnquist as they shared common roots and values. However, after a few terms, O'Connor established his unique position within the Court. Although he commonly sided with conservatives, O'Connor often authored a consensus that sought to narrow the scope of majority opinion. To this day, O'Connor's fundamental legal philosophy remains difficult to define. Approach each case with individual treatment and always try to reach a practical conclusion. His moderation aided his role as a centrist coalition builder, which consequently strengthened his influence on the Court. Work Cited http://www.oyez.org/oyez/resource/legal_entity/102/http://www.lucidcafe. com/library/96mar/oconnor.htmlhttp://supct.law.cornell.edu/supct/justices/oconnor.bio.html