In the first place, Libertarianism is at the heart of conservatism, and since many people don't see a lot of conservatism in the Republican party, I don't see how his alliance with Libertarians has anything to do with anything.
Secondly, even if you somehow think Libertarians have cooties, remember that the reason Ron Paul ran as a Libertarian is because he first sought the nomination from the Republicans, but they were too blind and ignorant to nominate him, so he accepted the nomination of the Libertarian party.
Furthermore, some very prominent politicians have changed parties, with no seeming ill effects. You may have heard of Ronald Reagan and Rick Perry, both of whom were DEMOCRATS before they were Republicans.
SO WHAT?
You are correct. Conservatism has strong influence from libertarianism (small l).
If the Libertarian Party (capital L) and the Republican Party shared identical platforms, there wouldn’t be any cause for two separate parties, would there?
I don’t think Libertarians have cooties at all. Everyone has the right to an opinion. As far as third parties go, they seem to have the largest constiuency.
Dr. Paul has clung to many L beliefs. I am of the opinion he runs with an R after his name is to garner more votes and attention. Most people can’t tell you who the L candidates are. There don’t seem to be any televised L debates.
JMHO