Polls say only about one-third of Americans can even name the three branches of government, much less say what they do.
What would you like us to know about the judicial
branch of our government?
Apparently a great many people have forgotten that the framers of our
Constitution went to such great effort to create an independent judicial
branch that would not be subject to retaliation by either the executive
branch or the legislative branch because of some decision made by those
judges.
Tom DeLay and other conservatives railed against
judges when Terri Schiavo died. Was that painful for you?
I don’t want to name names. There were some members of Congress. I was
very concerned and continued to be because what it evidences to me is a lack
of understanding about what the framers of the Constitution were trying to
put in place.
Although you were nominated to the court by
President Reagan in 1981, you became known as a centrist who disappointed
conservatives and provided relief to liberals.
Look, that’s your spiel, not mine. I tried to decide each case based on
the law and the Constitution.
You were always very practical.
That’s my ranch upbringing. If something is broken, you repair it
yourself and you don’t care if it’s beautiful. You just care if it works.
In 2005, after you announced you would step down
from the Supreme Court, you indicated you would like to see a woman replace
you.
It was better for me when I was joined at the court by a second woman.
When I was there alone, there was too much media focus on the one woman, and
the minute we got another woman, that changed.
You’re referring to Ruth Bader Ginsburg, who joined
the court in 1993.
I like her very much. She’s a very effective judge.
What did you think when President Bush nominated
Harriet Miers to replace you?
Her nomination was withdrawn before I had time to think anything.
How is your husband doing?
Not well. There’s no good news with Alzheimer’s.
A while ago, it was reported that he had struck up
a romance with a patient at an assisted-care center, and you seemed not to
mind.
Heavens no. He was in a cottage, and there was a woman who kind of
attached herself to him. It was nice for him to have someone there who was
sometimes holding his hand and to keep him company. And then he was moved to
a different cottage, because his condition deteriorated. And in the new
cottage, there’s another woman who has been very sweet to him. And I’m
totally glad.
How do you get along with John McCain, your current
senator in Arizona?
I don’t know him well. He came to Arizona just shortly before I left for
Washington.
Whom did you vote for in the presidential election?
Come on, is this about my Web site?
O.K., go ahead, put in a plug. Tell us why kids
should log onto Ourcourts.org.
You’ll have a good time if you do because we have some games that you
will find most intriguing.
Do you call yourself a feminist?
I never did. I care very much about women and their progress. I didn’t
go march in the streets, but when I was in the Arizona Legislature, one of
the things that I did was to examine every single statute in the state of
Arizona to pick out the ones that discriminated against women and get them
changed.
So do you call yourself a feminist today?
I don’t call myself that.
Is there a label you prefer?
A fair judge and a hard worker.