I'm referring specifically to her being an independent thinker. She has looked into the facts and arrived at her own conclusions, believes in what she says and believes in her cause because of the facts and not because of any outside manipulations. And yes, her autism has a lot to do with that.
Also, Asperger's syndrome is no longer a thing. In the DSM-IV, it was classified as a separate disorder, but the DSM-V (2013) dropped Asperger's as a valid diagnosis and now recognizes those symptoms as being part of the autism spectrum.
https://www.healthline.com/health/aspergers-symptoms-in-adults