EARTHQUAKE: THE LONG ROAD BACK : Quake Gives Rise to Brief Political Unity : Aid: State’s congressional delegation and Sacramento officials of both parties meet in Washington to push for federal assistance. But rifts quickly emerge.

The biggest names in California politics turned momentarily chummy Tuesday as they squeezed in shoulder-to-shoulder at a news conference to put aside partisan bickering and push for billions of dollars in earthquake relief funds.

But, as is often the case with the diverse California delegation, it took only a few minutes--and several prodding questions from reporters--to jolt the unanimity like a sharp aftershock.

First, a fissure developed between Republican and Democratic lawmakers over a proposal to bar illegal immigrants from receiving earthquake assistance. Then, Insurance Commissioner John Garamendi blasted Treasurer Kathleen Brown, his opponent in the upcoming Democratic gubernatorial primary, and Republican Gov. Pete Wilson for refusing to acknowledge the need to raise state taxes in an election year to rebuild Southern California.

“Anybody who says we are going to do this without a temporary tax increase is either a fool or a liar,” Garamendi fumed.

California Democrats in the House also privately accused Wilson of playing election-year politics when he focused on illegal immigration instead of on securing earthquake assistance during a closed-door breakfast meeting.

Amid the political rumblings, about 30 California Democrats and Republicans from Washington and Sacramento expressed optimism that they will succeed in passing President Clinton’s $8.6-billion aid package through Congress and generate matching funds to meet the state’s obligation.

“Natural disasters are not a political event,” the state’s leaders said in a joint statement. “They strike Democrats and Republicans alike. That is why we are here today in a show of strong bipartisan support.”

After their meeting in the elegant Rayburn House office building, the elected officials paraded to a nearby committee room filled with reporters. The Californians looked as if they were posing for a reunion photo as they uneasily crowded together before television cameras.

Wilson, the former Marine, stood ramrod-straight between Democrats Kathleen Brown and Garamendi, who are vying for the chance to knock off Wilson in November. Assembly Speaker Willie Brown, no soul mate of the governor’s, also flew cross country to join the festivities. Directly behind the governor were Sen. Barbara Boxer and Sen. Dianne Feinstein, who lost a bitterly contested race to Wilson in 1990. Nearby was Rep. Jerry Lewis (R-Redlands), who has feuded openly with Feinstein over legislation to protect the California desert.

Rep. Don Edwards (D-San Jose), the retiring dean of the congressional delegation, reported that the California leaders had emerged from “a very friendly” meeting at which they agreed to mobilize support for quake relief. “It’s going to take a lot of hard work to pass the bill. It is essential that California be united. We are united.”

Before long, however, the unified front began to crumble.

Some Democrats left the news conference seething at Wilson for devoting less than 10 minutes of the hourlong meeting to the Northridge earthquake. Instead, the governor concentrated on his crusade to get the federal government to reimburse California $3 billion this year for the cost of providing services to illegal immigrants.

“It was just beyond my comprehension,” said one prominent California House Democrat, who spoke on the condition of anonymity. “If the people in Los Angeles were watching this, they would not fathom it. Two hundred thousand people are suffering from the California earthquake and we are talking about immigration. It is just mind-boggling.”

At the press conference, efforts to maintain the cooperative spirit were sidetracked when Rep. Dana Rohrabacher (R-Huntington Beach) was asked about his proposed legislation to keep illegal immigrants from receiving earthquake assistance. “I hate to be the skunk at the lawn party here,” he said.

The “illegal alien problem” in California, Rohrabacher said, is breaking the state’s budget. “Providing millions, perhaps hundreds of millions of dollars, worth of aid for people who are here illegally . . . is ridiculous.”

Most members of the California congressional delegation have come to expect explosive remarks from Rohrabacher. But his statements about immigrants proved too much for freshman Rep. Xavier Becerra (D-Los Angeles), who shook his head in disgust as he approached the podium.

Becerra, visibly upset with Rohrabacher, said: “It does damage to the California delegation and all representatives for us to say that the undocumented are breaking the back of California. . . . This is a time now to look at every human being in this country, particularly in Los Angeles, who is in need as a result of this disaster.”

Moments later, Wilson tweaked Garamendi and Kathleen Brown for their dispute over the need to raise state taxes and their lack of authority in deciding the issue.

“I must tell you,” Wilson told reporters with tongue partly in cheek, “I bitterly resent your efforts to try to divide the treasurer and the insurance commissioner, who disagree strongly on this. I think that in decency you should allow them to go back to California and find out the magnitude of the numbers. Then they can argue about it. Those of us who actually make the decision, the Legislature and myself, can be advised.”

The presence of the two Democratic candidates for governor also was questioned by Speaker Willie Brown.

“Kathleen and John were pretty much nonexistent in that room,” Brown said of the breakfast meeting. “They didn’t say anything. They were just there. Period. And I don’t know what either one of them (is) doing back here.”

Other partisan differences surfaced when Rep. Randy Cunningham (R-San Diego) served notice that Republicans intend to demand a vote on forcing Congress to find cuts to offset the earthquake package. But before Cunningham could elaborate, Edwards cut him off and abruptly ended the news conference.