The best politicians are professionals, and they've learned their profession with time and effort. The same scientists would turn up their noses in distain at a politician who took a crash course in science.

While this is exactly the opposite of what the Founders envisoned, it is the truth in American politics. The skill set of a politician (corruption, lying convincingly, backstabbing, etc.) is either learned or passed down within a family. I doubt anyone could any more take a "crash course" to become an effective politician than they could to become an airline pilot.