Councilman Points Out He’s No Newcomer

City Councilman Robert A. Curtis likes to point out that he is no newcomer to Mission Viejo.

Curtis, 34, moved there as a boy with his family in 1967, grew up in one of the community’s first housing tracts, graduated from Mission Viejo High School in 1973 and was the first student representative on the Saddleback Valley Unified School District board of education.

A graduate of USC and Loyola law school, he became active in partisan politics while in law school, serving as an assistant secretary in the state Republican Party. After a stint as law clerk for Justice William P. Clark of the state Supreme Court, he bought a plane ticket to New Hampshire in the winter of 1980 to campaign for presidential candidate Ronald Reagan.

That led to an appointment with the U.S. Justice Department in Washington, until “the grass looked greener” back in California. He moved to San Clemente to make a “Quixotic” run for Congress in the 43rd District in 1982, finishing 12th among 18 in the primary, which was won by Johnnie R. Crean, who was later defeated by Ron Packard (R-Carlsbad) in an unprecedented write-in campaign.

Curtis enjoys politics and does not rule out running for higher office in the future. Though “content” with the challenges on the council, “if the opportunity arises in the future, I think I would seek it, but it depends on whether it’s the right time and right place. There are a lot of personal and professional considerations,” he said.

In private practice until earlier this year, Curtis recently became an assistant district attorney in Riverside County.

Although a conservative, Curtis came out in support of the controversial slow-growth Measure A in Orange County last year, arguing that it was necessary to assure roads for new development. Many of his colleagues were puzzled.

But Curtis enjoys his maverick image. His idols are Winston Churchill and Roman orator Marcus Cicero, for “each had periods of political isolation, but they are best remembered as being true to their values and principles,” he said.

His favorite song, he confirmed with a laugh, is Frank Sinatra’s rendition of “My Way.”

“Yeah, the tape’s worn out,” he joked.