First, there is no such thing as "moderate Islam". That is a construct of western society - wishful thinking. Such version of Islam is denied by the great majority of Islamic leaders in the world, and contradicted by Islamic scripture. See THIS ARTICLE for further information on the myth of moderate Islam.
HERE is still more on the "Elusive Moderate Islam." Is truly "moderate" Islam reflected by only apostate Muslims?"
What is a "moderate Muslim", really? How "moderate" are they?
Our popular perception is shaped by our Judeo-Christian-centric western culture. We consider all religions in the light of Judaism and Christianity, assuming that tolerance, forgiveness, and "ten commandment"-type mandates are common to all religions. Consequently, we assume a lot.
For the most part we consider a Muslim to be "moderate" when he does not overtly condone, advocate, or participate in violent Jihadi acts. In other words he is moderate when he acts "Christian." With this definition, a significant number of Muslims appear moderate. However, the words "overtly" and "appear" are important.
We also need to be aware that a certain percentage of Muslims are "nominal" Muslims, not fully knowledgable about their faith; not fully practicing their faith, like many "nominal Christians." It has been demonstrated that the more devout the Muslim becomes, the more he learns about the Islamic ideology, the more dedicated and committed he becomes to the teaching of the Qur'an, the Hadith, and demands of historical Islam.
The more devout may be labeled an "Islamist": One who believes and practices the historic teachings of the Islamic ideology. And those teachings are certainly not "moderate" - at least not from the western Judeo-Christian perspective. The term is used to distinguish an active or devout Muslims from an inactive or less devout Muslims, or from those who are perceived to be "moderate Muslims." However, there is a strong argument for considering all these various terms - Islamist, Islamism, Moderate Muslim - all pointless. Islam is Islam as Andrew Bostom amply describes and as further elaborated here.
It has been shown that a Muslim who participates in civic or government affairs, is a "good neighbor", drinks with his buddies, or particpates in Western vices like porn and frequenting strip clubs is not necessarily a "moderate" Muslim. That is not a reliable criteria.
So what is going on here. Things get confusing with Islam's practice of Taqiyya and the occurance of Sudden Jihad syndrome.
Here is a video by a former Muslim explaining "Where Are the Moderate Muslims?" courtesy of Prager University. One word of caution. At the end of the video the speaker claims Islam can be reformed from within. Islamic doctrine and texts take exception to that possibility. So that "hope" tends to be more "pipe dream" than a realistic possibility.
Their Qur'an does in fact contain hundreds of verses that serve as the basis for their fascist tendencies, their supremacist self-image, their intolerance, and the basis for terrorist acts. HERE HERE and HERE. HERE are the Qur'an's and Hadith's verses of violence. Therefore, a moderate could be difined as a Muslim who specifically disbelieves, discounts, or ignores these signficant and widespread teachings throughout the Qur'an. But how many Muslims have really done that? How can we know? We can't. It would be like trying to discern a "true Christian" by some test or assumption of an individual's belief in certain passages of the Bible.
However, in modern times, there is no stigma in being known as a Christian (except among Muslims) whether you really believe most or all of the Bible or don't. Christianity does not even approach Islams record of violence over the past several centuries. On the other hand Muslims have a well-deserved reputation of being Islamic, especially when they express or demonstrate their belief in most or all of the Qur'an. Islam leads the pack of world religions by a huge margin in the number of acts of violence. Then, why would a truly "moderate" Muslim wish to remain associated with this type of ideology unless they truly believed in all of it? Unfortunately, the concept of "moderate Muslim" becomes an oxymoron.
Recep Tayyip Erdogan, the Prime Minister of the "moderate" Islamic nation of Turkey, said this:
This leader of a "moderate" Muslim nation declares Islam must influence and control all facets of life. Democray is only a means to an end, the end being Islamic Sharia law. There is no moderate Islam. There many be moderate Muslims, those who are less devout, less involved or more lukewarm. In Islam, those "moderates" fall short of practicing "true Islam." However, for anyone studying the current Islamic phenomenon, it becomes more and more apparent that there may be many fewer "moderate" Muslims than we are led to believe.
HERE is a dialogue between Robert Spencer and several "moderate Muslims" and others discussing "The Search for Moderate Islam." The conclusion I reach is that "moderate Islam" is indeed wishful thinking.
Here is an all too common example of a Muslim college student who appears to be moderate. As a memeber of the Muslim Student's Association she asks David Horowitz a qeustion during a Young Americans for Freedom forum meeting at the University of California San Diego. In the process of answering her question, Mr. Horowitz asks her a question. Here answer answers her question for all who are listening.