Arabs and Muslims appeared willing to give U.S. President Barack Obama the benefit of the doubt as a voice for change in American policy toward the Muslim world, particularly after the past eight years of Bush administration policies, which culminated in the invasion of two Muslim countries and strong support to Israel.  In Egypt, both the establishment and the opposition alike seem optimistic about Obama's potential to change the US-Egypt relationship.  Former Egyptian Foreign Minster Ahmed Maher commented on Obama's inauguration speech, saying "This is a speech that reflected a new spirit of dialogue, reaching out and working together. This is a new direction that is certainly not what the Bush administration has been pursuing," while Muslim Brotherhood official Essam el-Erian expressed similar optimism about Obama's call for mutual respect between nations.  Gameela Ismail, wife of jailed el-Ghad politician Ayman Nour, also expressed optimism about Obama's pledge to hold authoritarian rulers accountable, but not without adding "...but I hope it will develop into real actions and real policies and strategies."