Of all the "end of the world" dystopian stories out there...

Although she rejected the labels "conservative" and "libertarian",[178] Rand has had continuing influence on right-wing politics and libertarianism.[11] Jim Powell, a senior fellow at the Cato Institute, considers Rand one of the three most important women (along with Rose Wilder Lane and Isabel Paterson) of modern American libertarianism,[179] and David Nolan, one of the founders of the Libertarian Party, stated that "without Ayn Rand, the libertarian movement would not exist".[180] In his history of the libertarian movement, journalist Brian Doherty described her as "the most influential libertarian of the twentieth century to the public at large"[161] and biographer Jennifer Burns referred to her as "the ultimate gateway drug to life on the right".[181] Economist and Ayn Rand student George Reisman wrote: "Ayn Rand...in particular, must be cited as providing a philosophical foundation for the case of capitalism, and as being responsible probably more than anyone else for the current spread of pro-capitalist ideas."[182]

She faced intense opposition from William F. Buckley, Jr. and other contributors for the National Review magazine. They published numerous criticisms in the 1950s and 1960s by Whittaker Chambers, Garry Wills, and M. Stanton Evans. Nevertheless, her influence among conservatives forced Buckley and other National Review contributors to reconsider how traditional notions of virtue and Christianity could be integrated with support for capitalism.[183]

The political figures who cite Rand as an influence are usually conservatives (often members of the Republican Party),[184] despite Rand taking some positions that are atypical for conservatives, such as being pro-choice and an atheist.[185] A 1987 article in The New York Times referred to her as the Reagan administration's "novelist laureate".[186] Republican Congressmen and conservative pundits have acknowledged her influence on their lives and have recommended her novels.[187]

The financial crisis of 2007–2008 spurred renewed interest in her works, especially Atlas Shrugged, which some saw as foreshadowing the crisis.[188] Opinion articles compared real-world events with the plot of the novel.[189] During this time, signs mentioning Rand and her fictional hero John Galt appeared at Tea Party protests.[190] There was also increased criticism of her ideas, especially from the political left, with critics blaming the economic crisis on her support of selfishness and free markets, particularly through her influence on Alan Greenspan.[191] For example, Mother Jones remarked that "Rand's particular genius has always been her ability to turn upside down traditional hierarchies and recast the wealthy, the talented, and the powerful as the oppressed"[185] while equating Randian individual well-being with that of the Volk according to Goebbels. Corey Robin of The Nation alleged similarities between the "moral syntax of Randianism" and fascism.