By Rosalind S. Helderman and Lisa Rein
Washington Post Staff Writers
Monday, April 28, 2008
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.
Gay rights advocates say they found Muse's behavior puzzling. At first, they said, he seemed amenable to expanding rights for same-sex couples. In the end, he voted against measures concerning property rights and medical decisions in favor of Republican-backed amendments.
"He positioned himself as reasonable and willing to compromise," said Dan Furmansky of Equality Maryland, the state's leading gay rights group. "He indicated his flexibility to just about everyone on that committee. . . . It makes you wonder why he was not upfront from the beginning."
Muse said he struggled with the issue, in part because of Britt's support and because he did not want to be criticized for intermingling his religious beliefs as a pastor with public policy. In the end, he said, he put aside his religious beliefs and listened to constituents.
"I voted based on what I heard from them," he said. "Based on the letters I received and the e-mails I received."
In Annapolis, Muse cuts a charismatic figure, charming and affable, impeccably dressed in monogrammed shirts and gold cuff links. He has been a quiet presence on the floor, rising infrequently to speak, but has spoken powerfully on issues he has chosen to address, including his opposition to a violent form of martial arts known as ultimate fighting and to a flavored beer drink marketed to young people.
Muse said he was not attempting to scuttle National Harbor when, on the final day of the session, he proposed changes to a bill that would have provided the project 40 liquor licenses. But he said he was disturbed by reports showing that while more than 30 percent of contracts at National Harbor have gone to local or minority businesses, few have gone to minority businesses in Prince George's.
Muse moved to reduce the number of licenses allowed in the bill but said he would be willing to come back next year and raise the number after he had had time to investigate whether minority contractors had been fairly treated. He went as far as to draft a letter to developer Milton V. Peterson asking that political leaders appoint a committee to vet the project's contracts but said he never actually sent it.
National Harbor requested that the bill be pulled rather than accept the changes, preferring to have the 300-acre project's restaurants go before the local liquor board one by one to seek licenses.
Peterson has declined to comment. But County Executive Jack B. Johnson (D) fretted that Muse's actions might complicate efforts to sell the county to high-end retailers at an annual convention in Las Vegas next month. Senate President Thomas V. Mike Miller Jr. (D-Calvert) said the debate set the county back "light-years." Gov. Martin O'Malley, in a closed-door meeting, told Muse that his actions could be viewed as a "shakedown."
Muse said he now feels he is being targeted to force him to back down from his position. "I think it's totally unfair that when I stand up, I'm attacked," he said. He said he is incensed that his draft letter to Peterson was leaked, calling its wide circulation "definitely unethical and possibly criminal."
At the same time, the tussle could boost Muse's popularity at home, where he is rumored to be contemplating a second run for county executive in 2010 when term limits force Johnson to leave office. Muse said he has given no serious thought to leaving the Senate but would not rule out a run.
"This is a struggle that continues in our community for economic power and the uplift of our people," said Ollie Anderson, a political ally. "If that means disagreeing with what the governor wants to do, then I'm glad there is someone in office willing to do that."
If he does seek higher office, one issue likely to arise would be Muse's financial stewardship of the large congregation he runs. By now, many county residents are familiar with complaints of a United Methodist church in Brandywine he quit in 1999, taking with him some congregants to form the Ark of Safety Christian Church. United Methodist congregants said Muse left the church with $6 million in debt and sued. The case was resolved.
What is less known is his new congregation's continuing financial difficulties, as it has renovated a large house of worship in Upper Marlboro. Last year, a court imposed a lien on the church after a contractor said the congregation failed to pay more than $700,000 in construction costs. The contractor has asked the court to next month consider a motion that would let the company foreclose on the property to repay the bills.
Muse said that the two sides have reached a settlement and that the church has already made three payments to the contractor. One more is due next month, and when it is paid, he said, the issue will be resolved. An attorney for the contractor declined to comment.
The church has also been sued three times in the past three years by companies seeking payment of bills. Each suit has been resolved.
Muse said his congregation is not wealthy. Some of its congregants have been laid off and face foreclosure of their own homes, leading to a drop-off in giving. But he said that the congregation is financially stable and that any suggestion to the contrary is part of a "rumor and innuendo" campaign against him.
"Everyone is struggling today," he said. "Multibillion-dollar businesses are struggling today. It's a sign of the times."
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