This article examines the ways in which the U.S. public, media, interest groups, and foreign-policy elites, including Congress, influence the making of American policy toward political Islam. It focuses on the domestic context of American politics, especially the linkages among society, politics, and government. Following an analysis of the historical, cultural, and current political developments that inform Americans' attitudes on Islamic resurgence, this article argues that contemporary security and strategic considerations, not merely culture and ideology, account for America's preoccupation with Islamism.