"If you analyze it I believe the very heart and soul of conservatism is libertarianism. I think conservatism is really a misnomer just as liberalism is a misnomer for the liberals — if we were back in the days of the Revolution, so-called conservatives today would be the Liberals and the liberals would be the Tories. The basis of conservatism is a desire for less government interference or less centralized authority or more individual freedom and this is a pretty general description also of what libertarianism is.”
—Ronald Reagan
Source: Reason Magazine, Jul. 1, 1975
Yup, those embarrassing Texans really ought to stay out of the Republican Party. BTW while Ron Paul is a libertarian, he disagrees with the LParty on numerous issues including abortion and border patrol/immigration.