I'm more inclined to think that it is an instance of stovepiping

Maybe, this SEC commissioner himself has bitcoins and he decided it might be the right time to pump Bitcoin a little (it may also be any altcoin). Maybe, someone close to him asked this dude to say a positive thing about Bitcoin. As far as I understand it though, it is not considered a good practice when officials make premature statements about things which could strongly affect prices. We may have to wait for a rebuttal coming out soon (like people and mass media having misinterpreted his words and he didn't actually mean anything to that tune)