Pr. George's Senator Quickly Steps Into Heated Battles

For state Sen. C. Anthony Muse, the General Assembly session ended the same way it began: with the first-term Democratic senator and pastor from Prince George's County standing in a spotlight usually reserved for those who have been in power much longer.

Just days after the session began in January, Muse found himself presiding over the funeral of fellow Sen. Gwendolyn T. Britt (D), rousing a crowd of 500 of the state's top leaders in an eloquent and much-quoted homily to take up her civil rights legacy.

Then, on the session's final day this month, he drew attention again, tussling with the governor, the president of the Senate and the developer of the $4 billion National Harbor over liquor licenses and minority contracting.

In between, he emerged as a new Annapolis power player and lightning rod, taking Britt's place as leader of the Prince George's Senate delegation and playing a key role in turning aside expanded rights for same-sex couples.

His reputation has now become something of a litmus test for how residents and outsiders view the fractured political leadership in Prince George's. Supporters have hailed him as a hero who refused to be intimidated by powerful interests that too often deny the majority-black county its due. His detractors have more quietly seethed, believing Muse used the contracting issue to boost his political ambitions.

"The jury's out on the impact this will have on the way developers will view the county," said former County Council member M.H. Jim Estepp, a close friend of Muse's who also leads a business group that has greeted National Harbor enthusiastically. "But he certainly looks like he ended up with the upper hand. . . . In terms of raw leadership, it seems like he may have had more clout than may have been perceived before."

The new scrutiny has come as Muse is working to guide his 1,500-member congregation over the shoals of an economic downturn.

Muse was elected to the Senate two years ago, having spent one term in the House of Delegates in the 1990s and made two unsuccessful campaigns for Senate and county executive. He has campaigned on the strength of his inspiring life story, telling of his rise out of foster care and poverty in Baltimore to a doctorate degree from Howard University and then a prominent pulpit.

He and his wife, Pat Lawson Muse, an NBC Channel 4 news anchor, live in a waterfront home in the Tantallon development and own a second home in St. Mary's County. Just as he has overcome his personal challenges, he tells voters that the county, too, can seize the opportunities of its growing middle class.

Accustomed to stirring his congregation weekly, he is known for his powerful oratory. At Britt's funeral, he praised his colleague, saying repeatedly and dramatically, "Well done, Senator Britt. We'll take it from here."

"He was fantastic," said state Sen. Brian E. Frosh (D-Montgomery), chairman of the Judiciary Committee. "It wasn't just show business. It was a series of messages, well delivered."

The words also put him at the center of one the session's touchiest issues, as gay rights activists hoped he would take up Britt's mantle as a supporter of same-sex marriage. He was widely seen as a swing vote on the Judicial Proceedings Committee. Two senators sponsoring the legislation courted him for a month.