WASHINGTON INSIGHT

PROJECTING CALIFORNIA: Among the legions of Washington lobbyists for California interests, the acknowledged superstar is the film industry’s Jack Valenti. “He not only has the means to invite members (of Congress) to the Motion Picture Assn. to see movies just out, he knows what he’s talking about. And he knows when to flatter and push and when not to,” Rep. Robert T. Matsui (D-Sacramento) says of President Lyndon B. Johnson’s former aide. Valenti’s most recent coup: helping persuade the House to kill a proposed $3-billion tax on the profits of U.S. firms’ foreign units.