Yes. He has intelligence. Which is what makes the early choices and lack of questioning his parents so sad. He is one of the most interesting characters of the series because of it, though. You can see him striving for his father's approval, and I suppose that is one of the major reasons why he does not break with that rhetoric. I cannot help wondering what would have happened if he had talked with his own words in the show in Diagon Alley in the first book, had become friends with Harry instead of Crabbe and Goyle...

Hmmm. Yes. Although that begs the question of how much of the grounds are covered by the non-apparition-protection. Walking from Hogsmede isn't really an option.