Penn: Governmental change is laborious

WASHINGTON, July 29 (UPI) -- Kal Penn, the actor who put his Hollywood career on hold to work for the White House, says he has learned the political process is a slow, laborious one.

Best known for his work on TV's "House" and "24," as well as in the "Harold and Kumar" movies, Penn recently ended a two-year stint as associate director for the White House's Office of Public Engagement.

In an exclusive interview with ABC News, Penn said, "I think what I've seen is that there is a realization that change is not a light switch.

"That if it was easy to flip on a light switch and change everything, someone would have done it before -- and it's actually a very laborious process, it's very slow. I wouldn't say it's disillusionment, I would say it's understanding the process," he said.

Penn went on to say he took the government job because he saw a need for change and wanted to help.

"I had friends who were over in Iraq and Afghanistan," Penn told ABC News. "I had buddies who had huge student debt, people who got kicked off their health insurance plans for one reason or another, and so that was my decision to get involved on a personal level."