Details are kind of beside the point. Like you mentioned he could have had several trading strategies. He also could have changed his mind based on insider information. That's why I believe it would be much better to require politicians to file a public 10b5-1 type plan for investments.

If you had insider information that you though would adversely impact the price of a stock you’re holding, selling OTM calls against it would not be a valid way to attempt to offload your position. The thesis put forward in the article for why this is a suspect trade doesn’t make any sense, and seems to intentionally be conflating selling stock with being assigned.

The point is “don’t be fucking around with options if you’re a US Congressman trading options in a company regulated by your committee”. I favor the broader “Don’t be fucking around with derivatives or single names if you’re a US Congressperson”