Patrons Circle Past Speaker

Senator Dennis DeConcini

  • Guest Moderator

    Fred DuVal

  • Special Introduction

    The Honorable Barry Goldwater, Jr.

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In September 1981, Senator Dennis DeConcini, a Democrat from Arizona, supported President Ronald Reagan's nomination of Sandra Day O'Connor as the first woman to take a seat seat on the United States Supreme Court.

Hear an eyewitness to history from that unprecedented time, Senator Dennis DeConcini himself, in a moderated conversation with his longtime friend Fred Duval, former U.S. deputy chief of protocol, and deputy assistant secretary of state in the 1990s. The Honorable Barry Goldwater, Jr., former member of the U.S. House of Representatives provides the introduction.

Seen here, Supreme Court nominee Sandra Day O'Connor sits alongside Senator Dennis DeConcini prior to the opening of her confirmation hearings on Capitol Hill before the Senate Judiciary Committee, September 9, 1981.

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Dennis DeConcini

The Pima County attorney from January 7, 1972, until mid-1976, Dennis DeConcini ran for the United States Senate in 1976 and served three terms as a senator from Arizona. During that time, he served on the Appropriations Committee, the Select Committee on Intelligence, and the Judiciary Committee, where he was among the first to push for the nomination of Sandra Day O'Connor to the U.S. Supreme Court.

Mr. DeConcini received his B.A. and LLB from the University of Arizona. He is a member of the Arizona Board of Regents, State Bar of Arizona, Pima County Bar Association, American Bar Association, and District of Columbia Bar Association. He also serves on the Board of Directors for the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children and the International Center.

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Fred DuVal

Gov. Doug Ducey appointed Regent Fred DuVal to an eight-year term on the Arizona Board of Regents in November 2018; Mr. DuValis chair-elect of the board. He is the founder of the Institute for Civil Discourse at the University of Arizona. The author of two books, Mr. DuVal serves Arizona charitable organizations, including the Phoenix YMCA and Big Brothers Big Sisters. He was a senior aide to Governor Bruce Babbitt and a deputy chief of protocol and former senior White House staff to President Clinton.

Barry Goldwater, Jr.

Mr. Goldwater is a former member of the U.S. House of Representatives, serving from 1969 to 1983. The son of the late U.S. Senator Barry Goldwater, he has won several awards, including the Achievement Award from the President's Commission on Employment of the Handicapped.

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The Senator Dennis DeConcini: Eyewitness To History podcast was recorded during an O'Connor Institute Patrons Circle Reception. To learn more at about the Patrons Circle, click here.

To view photos from the event, click here.Â