The little Jewish corner of the New Jersey delegation was hardly united in designation: two were delegates for Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.), two were for Sen. Hillary Clinton (D-N.Y.) and one was an unpledged “superdelegate.”

They were united in opinion, however: The time had come to unify the party and back the presumptive nominee.

I asked the group what they expected from Clinton’s speech in a precious few minutes before ushers hustled me off the convention floor in Denver (reporters are allowed on the floor, but apparently are not permitted to report.)

“As a staunch and passionate supporter of Hillary Clinton, I have every confidence she will stress the importance of real change and the need to defeat John McCain,” said Steven Goldstein of Tenafly. (Clinton did, and judging from the reception, hit a home run.).

“We don’t want four more years of Republican rule,” agreed another Clinton delegate, Pat Sebold of Livingston. The others nodded in agreement.

After thinking a bit, Goldstein felt he needed to add a caveat - but not about Clinton’s speech. Anticipating Obama’s acceptance speech Thursday night, he said: “As a Jewish delegate, I would like him to touch on Israel. Am I a one issue voter? No. But that issue is paramount to me.”

John McCain raised more than $1.5 million at a New Jersey fundraiser Tuesday night, and upwards of a third of it came via donations through the pro-Israel political action committee NORPAC– with even more coming through other NORPAC-affiliated donors. But the president of the group said that the fundraiser was not an official endorsement of the Arizonan, and if there was interest, the PAC would be willing to assist with a fundraiser for Barack Obama.

NORPAC president Ben Chouake said that the details of the Teaneck fundraiser were arranged by the McCain campaign, but that many of those that chaired the event were affiliated with the New Jersey-based political action committee. Unlike many other traditional pro-Israel PACs, which raise money and then distribute those funds to candidates, NORPAC acts as a “conduit,” he said, bundling the contributions they collect for a specific candidate so as to best demonstrate the support a candidate is receiving from the pro-Israel community.

Chouake said that while he personally is a supporter of the Republican candidate, NORPAC would be willing to serve in the same conduit role if some of its members wanted to hold a similar event for Barack Obama. “If Obama said he’s coming to New Jersey … absolutely,” said Chouake — although he added that an Obama supporter from NORPAC would have to handle the organizational duties.

But he wasn’t sure how much money such an event would bring in, estimating that among the 6,000 people on NORPAC’s mailing list, the split was 80-20 for McCain — although he did note that as a single-issue Israel group his PAC is not a true representation of the feelings of the entire Jewish community.

NORPAC did give $5,000 to McCain during the primaries, but Chouake said they wouldn’t be making a similar donation in the general election cycle. As of the end of July, the only other pro-Israel PAC that has made a donation to either presidential candidate is the D.C.-based National PAC, which donated $5,000 to McCain’s campaign during the primaries in early March.

News on some congressional races to watch over the next few months:

Could we have a Jewish member of Congress from Alaska? Two weeks before the primary, it’s certainly not out of the question. A poll shows state represenative Ethan Berkowitz is looking pretty good in the race to be the Democratic nominee, and in the general election he is up by 15 points on scandal-plagued Republican incumbent Don Young. The polls show a much closer race, though, if Young is knocked off in the GOP primary by current Alaska Lt. Gov. Sean Parnell. The Cook Political Report rates the race a tossup.

Twenty-nine year-old Jewish Democrat Josh Segall has raised more money than any other Democratic challenger in the state of Alabama, although the incumbent in Alabama’s Third District, Mike Rogers, still has more money in the bank. That race is still rated likely Republican by Cook.

In the only U.S. Senate race in the country where two Jewish candidates will face off, incumbent Republican Norm Coleman and Democratic challenger Al Franken are battling over who can cut Iraq reconstruction funds more. Last week, Coleman proposed a cut of $1.1 billion because of Iraq’s big surplus due to oil and gas revenus. Franken raised the ante Monday, calling for $7.1 billion in funds to be rescinded and put towards repairing America’s infrastructure. That race is considered a tossup.

Finally, in the race to succeed retiring Rep. Jim Saxton (R-N.J.) in New Jersey’s Third District, Democratic state Sen. John Adler’s huge fundraising advantage–due to a rough Republican primary his opponent Chris Myers had to spend lots of money on–led CQ Politics to move the race from Leans Republican to No Clear Favorite. Cook also has the Cherry Hill district rated a tossup.

Ann Lewis touts Hillary Clinton’s performance among Jewish voters: Read the rest

Dennis Shulman, the Democratic rabbi seeking to upend incumbent U.S. Rep. Scott Garrett in New Jersey’s 5th, put out a statement criticizing Jimmy Carter’s meeting with Hamas leaders.

Dennis Shulman’s Statement Concerning Jimmy Carter and Hamas

Demarest, NJ – “As a Democrat and a proud supporter of Israel, I am deeply disturbed by President Carter’s decision to treat terrorist leaders like Khalid Meshaal as if they are dignitaries,” said Shulman. “I support efforts to promote peace, but I see no signs that elevating Hamas before it renounces terrorism and its opposition to the very existence of Israel will help bring about peace.”

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Dr. Dennis Shulman has gained international recognition for his 30 years of work as a psychologist, educator, and author. An ordained rabbi for five years and blind since childhood, he has lived in New Jersey’s Fifth District for more than 25 years with his wife, Dr. Pamela Tropper, an obstetrician. They have two adult daughters.

UPDATE: This post has been changed to reflect new numbers up at MSNBC.

Hillary Clinton won the Jewish vote in New Jersey, but the exit polls say her margin was much slightly smaller than her win in New York. In N.J., Clinton won 56 63 percent of Jewish Democrats compared to 44 37 percent for Barack Obama.

Jews made up 9 percent of N.J.’s Democratic electorate.