ABSTRACT
In the months and years since September 11, 2001, the idea that the United States should promote democracy more actively in the Arab world has become commonplace. The United States faces three paradoxes. The first is that liberal elite reformers in much of the Arab world are already seen as clients of foreign powers and as collaborators in a Western effort to weaken and dominate the Arab world. Focusing attention and resources on these reformers runs the risk of isolating them still further, driving a deeper wedge between them and the societies we (and they) seek to affect. The second is that conservatives have intimidated liberals, many of whom have swung their support to existing authoritarian systems. Third, some of the most vocal proponents of democracy in the Middle East are Islamists—precisely the groups that most US policymakers are most interested in isolating.
