Paul Ryan

===History with Objectivism===
At a 2005 Washington, D.C., gathering celebrating the 100th anniversary of [[Ayn Rand]]'s birth, Ryan credited Rand with having inspired him to get involved in politics.<ref name="Auto2A-17" /> In a speech that same year at [[The Atlas Society]], he said he grew up reading Rand, and that her books taught him about his value system and beliefs.<ref name="atlassociety" /><ref name="reeve" /> Ryan required staffers and interns in his congressional office to read Rand,<ref name="reeve" /> and gave copies of her novel ''[[Atlas Shrugged]]'' as gifts to his staff for [[Christmas]].<ref name=Mayer /><ref name="Auto2A-18" /> In his Atlas Society speech, he also described [[Social Security (United States)|Social Security]] as a "socialist-based system".<ref name="Auto2A-19" />

In 2009, Ryan said, "What's unique about what's happening today in government, in the world, in America, is that it's as if we're living in an Ayn Rand novel right now. I think Ayn Rand did the best job of anybody to build a moral case of capitalism, and that morality of capitalism is under assault."<ref name="Mayer" />

In April 2012, after receiving criticism from [[Georgetown University]] faculty members on his budget plan, Ryan rejected Rand's philosophy of [[Objectivism]] as [[atheistic]], saying it "reduces human interactions down to mere contracts".<ref name="Auto2A-20" /> He also called the reports of his adherence to Rand's views an "[[urban legend]]" and stated that he was instead deeply influenced by his [[Catholic]] faith and by [[Thomas Aquinas]].<ref name="Auto2A-21" />