The writer 'goes' (badly) 'astray' [=stops being correct or reasonable] when she blames the current government for these problems.
The President was 'led astray' [=convinced to make a bad decision] by his advisers.
They marked the trail so hikers wouldn't 'go astray'. [=become lost]
(..) Do not enter that mountain without me. This is not the Greenwood of old. The very air of the forest is heavy with illusion. It'll seek to enter your mind and lead you astray. "Lead us astray"? What does that mean? You must stay on the path. Do not leave it. If you do, you'll never... (..)2013 The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug