Has Atlas Stopped Shrugging: 200 Days Into Trump’s Second Term, the Producers Are Returning.

When Ayn Rand published Atlas Shrugged in 1957, she wasn’t writing prophecy—she was issuing a warning. Her vision of a crumbling America, weighed down by bureaucratic excess and ideological rot, was meant to be cautionary. It’s no longer fiction. For many Americans, the Biden administration brought that dystopia uncomfortably close to reality.

From 2021 to early 2025, Washington became a proving ground for Rand’s dire themes: a government punishing success, vilifying individual achievement, and attempting to centrally plan every facet of American life. Energy independence was dismantled in favor of climate dogma. Borders were left open in the name of equity. Law and order eroded as crime surged and prosecutors looked the other way. And all the while, small businesses, farmers, and entrepreneurs—the real drivers of the American economy—were buried under regulation and rhetoric.

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The spirit of John Galt echoed in the silence of the American producer class. “When you see that in order to produce, you need to obtain permission from men who produce nothing,” Rand wrote, “you may know that your society is doomed.” Under Biden, the message from Washington was clear: comply, conform, and be quiet. If you dared to question government orthodoxy, you were branded a threat. If you worked hard and succeeded, you were expected to apologize for it. Many chose simply to walk away—from businesses, from innovation, from risk. Just as in Rand’s novel, Atlas began to shrug.

But now, 200 days into Donald Trump’s second term, the tide is beginning to turn. This administration has not merely reversed course—it has reasserted the fundamental American principles that Atlas Shrugged fought to preserve: individual liberty, the dignity of work, and the moral right to pursue prosperity without apology.

“I swear—by my life and my love of it—that I will never live for the sake of another man, nor ask another man to live for mine.” – John Galt, Atlas Shrugged

This isn’t just philosophy. It’s now policy in action. In less than seven months, the Trump administration has:

• Reinvigorated domestic energy production, ending the war on fossil fuels and restoring American energy independence;

• Slashed unnecessary regulations, allowing small businesses and industries to breathe again;

• Reasserted control at the southern border with renewed enforcement and serious policy overhaul;

• Actively dismantled the woke agenda embedded in federal agencies, education, and defense;

• And elevated the private sector as a partner in growth, not a target for political scapegoating.

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While Rand’s “Galt’s Gulch” was a hidden refuge for America’s best and brightest to escape to, today’s America must become that refuge for the world. If we are to rebuild, we must become a nation where merit is rewarded, not resented and where entrepreneurs are celebrated, not taxed into silence. A place where creators, risk-takers, and leaders are empowered to lead.

Of course, there are still entrenched interests working against this restoration. The permanent bureaucracy remains skeptical of change. Cultural institutions still push collectivist ideology. And many Americans are still recovering from the psychological exhaustion of four years under a government that treated liberty as a liability. But make no mistake: the gears are turning again.

“The world you desired can be won. It exists—it is real—it is possible—it’s yours.” – John Galt, Atlas Shrugged

That is the task of the next 1,000 days. To finish what has begun. To transform the temporary reprieve of a second Trump term into a permanent cultural and economic renewal. To build—not hide—our own Galt’s Gulch here at home. For years, Atlas carried the weight of a nation that despised him. He’s not shrugging anymore. He’s building again.

About the Author: Lance Wissinger is the Director of Political Operations at Hennessy Strategies, where he leads grassroots strategy and campaign execution. A longtime Southwest Florida resident, he played a key role in passing Florida’s Amendment 4 as Political Coordinator for the Florida Rights Restoration Coalition and later led engagement efforts for Americans for Prosperity in Tampa Bay. His journey—from incarceration to political leadership—reflects his deep commitment to second chances, civic engagement, and meaningful reform.