Gays Seek Assembly Post, Target Roos Because of Moriarty Ties

Some Los Angeles homosexual activists have been looking for the chance to put an openly gay politician in Sacramento. Now, thanks to the W. Patrick Moriarty scandal, they think they have it.

Plans are being made to challenge none other than Assembly Majority Leader Mike Roos in next year’s Democratic primary. Roos has had business dealings with Moriarty, the former fireworks manufacturer and corrupt political money man.

Roos has not been charged with any crime, but has been named in news accounts as one of those who benefited from Moriarty’s attempts to curry favor among legislators.

Roos’ challenger is expected to be Westside businessman Peter Scott, 46, a gay who moved here from Texas in the 1970s to make his fortune.

“I have been touching bases in the district and around the city and I am encouraged,” Scott said Thursday in an interview. “I am ready to make the race provided I have the base of support out there.

“I am not ashamed of the fact that I am gay and I believe the gay community in the district will be a base for me,” said Scott, who is a co-founder of the Municipal Election Committee of Los Angeles (MECLA), a predominantly gay and lesbian organization that has contributed hundreds of thousands of dollars to political candidates in recent years.

“But I am not running because I’m gay,” Scott continued. “I’m running because as a lawyer and community activist, I think I am qualified to serve in the Assembly--especially in a district with so many minority groups. I am very familiar with the problems any minority faces in trying to make its way in the world.”

Scott thinks the Moriarty scandal may have opened the door for him. Former Moriarty aides and others have said that Roos accepted prostitutes paid for by Moriarty while supporting a bill that would have benefited Moriarty’s fireworks business. It also has been reported that Roos received a $50,000 profit on a real estate investment with Moriarty just days after the bill passed the Legislature.

Roos, who has never responded fully to the accusations, said Thursday that he views the possible Scott challenge as a clear signal that liberal gays believe the time has come to win a legislative race.

“I think it is a yearning to have an openly gay person win a seat in the state Legislature,” Roos said, adding that it is a desire fueled by “the success in West Hollywood”--a heavily gay community that was incorporated last year.

Roos was so concerned about Scott’s plans that he and his mentor, Assembly Speaker Willie Brown (D-San Francisco), sought help Wednesday from Westside gay businessman Sheldon Andelson, a UC regent whose political connections among Democrats are among the best in California.

One person present at the meeting described it as “inconclusive.” Andelson, who has supported Roos in the past, said: “It was a private meeting. Beyond that I have no comment.”

Scott said Thursday that he expects Andelson to endorse him if he runs against Roos in next year’s Democratic primary. Scott has served on the board of directors of Andelson’s bank, the Bank of Los Angeles, and is well-connected to many of the people who have worked with Andelson on various political projects. Scott and another Andelson friend, peace activist David Mixner, founded a business consulting firm, Mixner-Scott, in 1975.

Although a number of Democrats say that Scott could raise a lot of money in the affluent gay community, they say he would face a tough battle in trying to unseat Roos, 39, who was first elected to the Assembly seat in a 1977 special election.

District Boundaries

Roos’ 46th District, which runs in a swath from Griffith Park south to the Santa Monica Freeway, has only 66,000 registered voters, the second-lowest total for an Assembly district in California. Although it has a large gay population concentrated in the Los Feliz and Silver Lake areas, many of the residents are Latino and Asian immigrants who do not normally participate in elections.

In other words, political consultants say, it is a hard district to “motivate.” That gives Roos a huge advantage since he is the incumbent. Another major advantage Roos has is his ability, as majority leader, to raise lots of money. Also, his closeness to Brown means that the Speaker would probably transfer a lot of money to the Roos campaign if it is needed.

“Peter Scott can raise enough money to give Roos a race,” said one political consultant, who asked not to be identified. “But any way you cut it Mike (Roos) has such a huge advantage in that kind of district.”

Margolin’s Foothold

The Assembly seat that the liberal gays would most like to have is the 45th District, which includes West Hollywood. But that district is represented by Burt Margolin, a young ally of the potent political organization headed by Democratic Reps. Henry A. Waxman of Los Angeles and Howard Berman of Studio City.

“The gays are looking for an Assembly seat but Burt (Margolin) is going to be there a while,” said Larry Kaplan, chief of staff to Los Angeles City Councilman Michael Woo, whose district shares some areas with Roos’ Assembly district. “They (gays) perceive Mike Roos as vulnerable. Frankly I don’t agree with that.”