Even while Minnesota's courts continue to wrestle with the state's disputed U.S. Senate race, Republican contender Norm Coleman (who hopes to return to the Senate seat he held for one term from 2003-2008), has decided to keep busy by agreeing to sign on as a consultant and strategic adviser to the Republican Jewish Coalition.

RJC Executive Director Matt Brooks said that Coleman will represent the group by addressing Jewish communities around the country on "the state of current affairs" and helping expand the group's "national leadership base." Brooks said the RJC is "confident that in a few months Senator Coleman will return to his seat in the Senate, but until that time, we are eager for him to travel across the country on our behalf and to be an important voice within the organization." See full statement here.

Meanwhile, the Democratic aspirant to the seat, Al Franken, who was in town to celebrate the inauguration, told the St. Paul Pioneer Press that he held a fundraiser to help defray the costs of his ongoing Senate quest.

                                                                                                              -- Julie Kosterlitz