On Monday he watched his successor, DOJ antitrust chief Joel Klein, launch a broad antitrust action against the Redmond company. The federal lawsuit asks that Microsoft ship Windows 98 without Internet Explorer included, or be forced to ship Netscape's Navigator software along with the OS.
Rule, who now is an antitrust partner with the Washington firm of Covington & Bering, says Klein and the DOJ are making a critical mistake. The government's case steps far outside the bounds of traditional antitrust law, and the request that Navigator be shipped with Windows 98 is unprecedented, he says.
Microsoft has taken full advantage of Rule's background and support, posting his analysis of the legal issues conspicuously on its website. While he is not directly involved in the company's legal defense, he has served as one of the most prominent defenders of its right to build products free of government interference.
Borland asked Rule why he supports Microsoft so unswervingly, and why he says the DOJ lawsuit is the work of a group of "fuzzy-headed academics."
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Partner, Covington & Burling
Microsoft
Former head of U.S. Department of Justice antitrust division
Great Falls, Va.