When you think about it, the same can be said for today's limosine liberals. They talk about redistribution of wealth, everyone else's wealth that is. They really don't believe in the socialist platitudes that they espouse, either.
Oh, they believe in them. For everybody else.
One of the great attractions of socialism is that somebody needs to "run the deal". And, to serve as the Politburo, supervising the apparat, who better than they?