Obama on Africa

“No country is going to create wealth if its leaders exploit the economy to enrich themselves, or police can be bought off by drug traffickers. No business wants to invest in a place where the government skims 20 percent off the top, or the head of the port authority is corrupt. No person wants to live in a society where the rule of law gives way to the rule of brutality and bribery. That is not democracy, that is tyranny, and now is the time for it to end.”

From the New York Times story on Obama's visit to Ghana. Clearly, sub-Saharan Africa is a low-priority for the administration, and Africans know that. But many will pay attention when he says things like this and, combined with the simple fact that he provides an example of a leader people can get excited about, it may go some way toward encouraging voters in African countries to get behind more inspiring candidates.