Television is rarely associated with political education, or any education for that matter. So much time is spent viewing programs that have little or no redeeming qualities that the few programs that do support learning are often overlooked. As I watched Representative Frank Wolf speaking to the students in my school, I knew that I would learn something from what he had to say. From the very beginning, Mr. Wolf seemed very calm, confident, and prepared for the task before him. After the initial speech and the ensuing questions were complete, I discovered three lessons that I had taken away from the program.

The first thing that I noticed about Mr. Wolf was his tenacity towards his ethical beliefs. Several times throughout his speech, Mr. Wolf commented on his own Christian views towards life and stressed the importance of staying true to what you believe in. He even went as far to say if you have to compromise your morals to succeed in your job "you need to get out." Mr. Wolf showed me that leaders need to stay true to themselves, if they want to move in the right direction. If leaders abandon what they believe in to gain success, fame or money, they will quickly find that they have spent their whole life working towards a false goal. Mr. Wolf described this as reaching the top of a ladder only to find that you had it against the wrong wall.

Another lesson I learned from Mr. Wolf was that leaders do not need to be the most qualified in order to be successful. Mr. Wolf talked about how he had a stuttering problem when he was younger that still appears occasionally today. Even though everyone said he would never be able to take up leadership in government because of his speech impediment, Representative Wolf overcame his problem and has taken on an important role in the national legislature. He could have given up and accepted what others thought of him, but instead, he persevered and achieved his goal. Mr. Wolf may not have been the smoothest talker, but he established himself as a leader by working to improve his strengths and overcome his weaknesses. All leaders need to follow his example by overcoming opposition and striving to improve their personal limitations.

The third thing I learned from Representative Wolf was that political leaders are people as well. Often politicians seem distant to the governing body they represent, which causes many people to feel out of touch with their elected officials. When I saw Mr. Wolf walking around my school library, talking about his family, and even mentioning a video game that I have played, it made him seem more like a person and less like the image of a politician with which I was accustomed. Leaders, including politicians, are all normal people who have taken on great responsibility; leaders can never be perfect but they deserve the support and respect of those who they are leading.

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