I think he's an idiot.
I can see where you're coming from, but I think he's more a victim of poor and inconsistent writing.
...Basically, being written to be an idiot.
When I played F3 the first time, I suspected mommy and daddy were renegade Enclave. Kinda surprised when they were given no origin, like they came into being with Project Purity.
Yeah, this is what I was thinking too. I was expecting there to be some big reveal, particularly in the scene with Autumn. It'd even explain why he was so dead-set on the Enclave not getting the Purifier, despite the fact that earlier the Purifier was the only thing that mattered to him, even over his son/daughter's life.