The "Downton Abbey" finale aired Sunday. What to do now that the season’s over? Reflect on the lessons of its characters. (Nick Briggs - AP) As someone who writes about leadership and is admittedly smitten with the period drama “Downton Abbey” on PBS, I’ve become particularly interested in the characters of Lord Robert Crawley, the generous and forgiving steward of the Downton estate, and that of Carson, the rigid butler whose careful management of old ways and social orders keeps the place operating as smoothly as possible. Both have effective, if differing, leadership styles, which endear both the fictional people in their charge and the viewers of the wildly popular show, which aired the finale of its second season Sunday night.

Religious leaders told a House panel Thursday the Obama administration was violating basic rights to religious freedom with its policies for requiring that employees of religion-affiliated institutions have access to birth control coverage.On Thursday, a brouhaha broke out during the House Committee on Oversight & Government Reform hearings on the contraceptive coverage rule. Congresswomen Carolyn Maloney (D-N.Y.) and Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-D.C.) walked out of the hearing after questioning why there were no women representatives on the first hearing’s panel of witnesses. Chairman Darrell Issa (R-Calif.) and his staff countered that the hearing was not just about contraception, but religious freedom; that the female Georgetown University law student the Democrats proposed was not “appropriate” or “qualified”; and that the Democrats should have turned in their witness selections earlier in the week.

Negotiators on Capitol Hill worked into Wednesday night, ironing out final details of an agreement to extend a cut in the payroll taxes paid by most Americans. (Haraz N. Ghanbari - AP) Could it actually happen? Could a pact over taxes and unemployment insurance come together without last-minute drama? Could Washington actually reach a deal without 11^th-hour histrionics and dysfunctional gridlock?

It’s looking quite possible. Early Thursday, lawmakers negotiating over an economic plan that would extend the payroll tax cut and unemployment benefits reached a final approval, and a vote is expected as early as Friday. What happened this time? Perhaps Obama’s strategy of being more confrontational is finally working. Maybe the GOP wised up to the idea that blocking a middle-class tax cut in an election year is rarely good politics. Either that or everyone has ski vacations planned for the President’s Day recess.

New York Knicks guard Jeremy Lin goes up for a basket against the Toronto Raptors during their NBA basketball game Tuesday night. (MIKE CASSESE - REUTERS) When Jeremy Lin hit the three-pointer with half a second left on the clock to beat the Toronto Raptors Tuesday night, you could almost hear the collective sound of NBA coaches and general managers smacking their foreheads once again.

As basketball fans by now, the New York Knicks phenom who has scored more points in his first five starts than any player since the NBA merger—and shocked the basketball world into a state of Linsanity—was an undrafted Harvard economics major with no scholarship offers to play Division 1 basketball. He wasn’t even in rotation two weeks ago for the Knicks, and now he may singlehandedly save this NBA season from complete irrelevance.

New York Knicks' guard Jeremy Lin has emerged over the last couple of weeks to lead the basketball team to several victories, yet it’s less clear what will happen once star players Amar’e Stoudemire and Carmelo Anthony return. (ERIC MILLER - REUTERS) You might think New York Knicks coach Mike D’Antoni’s job would be about to get easier. Star players Amar’e Stoudemire, who has been out following the death of his brother, and Carmelo Anthony, who has been recovering from a groin injury, are expected to return, with Stoudemire starting in Tuesday’s matchup against the Toronto Raptors and Anthony expected later this week. Add their skills to the sudden emergence of Jeremy Lin — the undrafted, out-of-nowhere point guard who has shocked the basketball world by scoring more than 20 points and seven assists in each of the last five games — and D’Antoni will have an even deeper roster of talent from which to choose.