Guinea President Alpha Condé, center, mingles with Rev. Jesse Jackson, second from left, Rep. Karen Bass (D-Calif.) and Ron Dellums, right, a former mayor of Oakland and former congressman. (Pete Marovich/For The Washington Post)


Alpha Condé, the reserved and slender president of Guinea, retired to his sprawling suite Wednesday evening at the Four Seasons in Georgetown, having just wrapped up a long day of meetings on the Hill.
The 77-year-old leader had bags under his eyes, and his handlers were concerned he wouldn’t appear vibrant in photographs. But there was more politicking to be done, so the president of the Ebola-ravaged nation changed from his sharp navy suit into a loose burnt-orange top and dark slacks and kept working late into the night.