All true. The first and foremost job of ANY political candidate, regardless of party, is to get elected. It is extremely easy to say the wrong thing when you are trying not to. Hussein's, "You didn't build that!" is a perfect example. Whenever Ron Paul spoke he'd stick his foot in his mouth. It was as if he was trying not to get elected.
As a card carrying Libertarian, I read their newsletter and much of the internal debate is about why the party sticks to their platform even though some portion or another will be viewed unfavorable by some portion of the voting populace.
Their answer is that they believe the Party was formed based upon the same principles the Founding Fathers believed when they created the Constitution.
The answer to the debate comes down to: Do we want to do what it takes to be elected or do we want to stand by our principals and do what we think is right.?
It is still a tough question. You can't do what you think is right if you don't get elected....
Their decision is reflected in their motto The Party of Principle
One area where they have "backed off" of principal a bit is the issue of matching campaign funds.
On principle, they don't believe the government should be taxing at anywhere near the current rates. Even further, they sure don't believe the government should be using the money they do collect in taxes to pay for anyone's campaign for office.
Since their opponents get a great advantage by doubling their 'war chest' and since members of the Libertarian Party are paying taxes like everyone else, they leave it up to the individual candidate to decide whether to take the matching funds or not.
True, it might be foolish to not "play the political game" and choose your policies based upon which way the wind is blowing, but then then that is what many dislike about almost all of the incumbents.