This is true, but an exception just for him would still leave the rest of us in the lurch. A lot of great security researchers have had to (at least publicly) abandon their work or move it overseas because of the DMCA.
I'm reminded of the old story called "The Emperor's New Clothes." Under the DMCA, the boy who points out that the Emperor is naked would be the one who gets punished, not the "manufacturer" of the illusory raiment.
-Jay