A little more confrontational than his normal starting position, this is like him rolling up the sleeves on his paws, ready to get down to GD business. Based on the position of his hands, he wants you to ask: Who is this swaggering gunslinger? He does not want you to actually think too hard about the answer, though.

That allows for an easy transition into this one. Now that he's got his metaphorical sleeves rolled up -- and even his actual sleeves, even though that kind of business is normally the province of dirty liberals and non-job creators and other people who wear dungarees and so on -- he's able to go into cocky attack mode. He's got his fingers spread out, presenting them to the audience, preening a bit, like a peacock. A conservative peacock with a haircut you can set a watch by.

This is just a slight twist on the last one, but an important one. He's already called your bluff, asked you to step outside, and now you've backed down. This is an exclamation point on that confrontation. Just a pause, hands still out there, kind of raising their chin at you, sneering. WHAT NOW, HUH? YEAH. THAT'S WHAT I THOUGHT.

This is the star of the new collection: the Double Stop Sign. If the earlier, more confrontational poses were like him brandishing a gun, this is him using it, firing a warning shot. It's like, "LISTEN! I am not a career politician but I am absolutely begging you right now, please please please drop whatever you are doing, as long as it's not something involving an American flag or creating a job for an American or something like that, and please help me become a career politician! Cornflower blue shirts don't buy themselves. I need earmarks!"

The Word Maker. This is a simple but effective framing device. Sort of a reverse show and tell: he says something, then holds it up for you, in case you missed it. He's working on making it bilingual, not because he supports illegal immigration but because he'd like to be well-rounded.

Another great new addition: the Hand Puppet, aka the Parrot. I like that he held back such an obvious choice for later in the campaign. It's like he's saying, "Yeah, I know, I know, but man, hold on, we'll get there. Just be patient. That's the sort of restraint you guys are looking for from a senator, right? Don't leave me hanging. That's what you want, right? Right? RIGHT?!"

And finally, a reminder. Just holding his paws there, arms in tight, every digit exposed. Here they are. Take a long look. This is me, Tom Leppert. I've got conservative talking points and these hands. Whaddya think?