Who inspires hip-hop’s great inspirer? Young Jeezy says it is undoubtedly Senator Change himself, Barack Obama.

” ‘I know it’s a problem, but how can we work it out?’ ” Young said of what he perceives Obama’s philosophy to be. “Barack, he has a lot of things going for him. He’s ahead of his time. Given the right chance, he’ll make some type of change. We’ll feel it. I really feel that. John McCain is cool, but he looks like a fraud to me.”

Jeezy says he has some issues with how the country is being run, and his take on the ‘hood’s state of affairs will be heard all over his August release, The Recession. He thinks McCain is the wrong person to be the country’s cleanup man, especially since he had a chance to talk to the senator after a taping of “Saturday Night Live,” during which Jeezy performed with Usher.

“I told him the ‘hood was f—ed up, and he was like, ‘How you doing?’ ” Mr. 17.5 recalled. “Real talk. They know entertainers, so they shake your hand [and say], ‘I’m your friend.’ But my mama is about to have surgery that I gotta pay for out of my pocket because she can’t get insurance. I don’t really feel McCain. It ain’t just because Barack is black; he can make change. Just like Bush equals recession, Barack equals progression. I really feel that, all bullsh– aside. He’s gotta come in and keep it right.

“I be in the ‘hood every day, and I motivate the thugs. Barack motivates me,” he added. “To see somebody taking that extra mile … like, ‘OK, I can make some change.’ That’s how I felt when I got in the rap game. I felt I could make change. I did.”

Jeezy recently dropped his new mixtape The Prime Minister with DJ Infamous.