The confluence of recent events in the Arab world — popular uprisings, political upheavals, and the emasculation of al-Qaeda — has put some in Washington in a bind, with policymakers applauding the democratic sweep but nervous that Islamist parties could gain power and subvert democratization. Indeed, the Middle East's and North Africa's own recent history offers important reasons to worry about the use of Islam in politics. But, as this history shows, the peril during times of political turmoil is not simply that Islam is used to advance extremist agendas, but that it is used to mask deficiencies in governance, legitimacy, and accountability.