Zach Lahn: The making of a right-wing folk hero

At this moment in our country’s history, celebrity can land on people like a terrible, swift sword — or the satisfying embrace of a loving reach-around. University of Colorado at Boulder student Zach Lahn is experiencing the latter, figuratively speaking, with the conservative media giving him a lingering hand for challenging President Barack Obama during a healthcare town hall in Grand Junction on Saturday. For every negative blog mention of Lahn’s performance, there have been multiple positive ones, ranging from the wet Fox News kiss above and a BrainShavings.com post that declares, “Bravo to Zach Lahn, for having bigger balls than 99% of the media! I hope this young man’s ready for the Joe The Plumber treatment, courtesy of ACORN and SEIU.” As for Lahn’s own media contributions, he’s got a Twitter feed, and although it’s protected, requiring his approval for access (I’ve asked), his bio reads, “Determined Christian Conservative in CO, home state of IA not stopping until everyone agrees w/me. Pro-Life, Pro-Guns, Pro-Reagan, Anti-Big Gov.” Bonus: He lists his website as that of the ultra-right Heritage Foundation. Expect him to be hanging out with Newt Gingrich and Charles Krauthammer before the week is through.