Charles Kirbo; Key Advisor to President Carter

Charles Kirbo, 79, veteran advisor to former President Jimmy Carter. The former chief executive called Kirbo his “closest friend” and said, “Without his wisdom, sound judgment and guidance, I never would have been a state senator, governor or president of the United States.” An attorney, Kirbo first helped Carter in 1962 by arguing a vote-tampering case that put Carter in the Georgia Senate. Kirbo remained a behind-the-scenes advisor during Carter’s campaigns and tenure as governor and president. The advisor declined Carter’s offers to appoint him to public office, including a vacant U.S. Senate post. After Carter’s defeat in 1980, Kirbo helped raise funds for the Carter Presidential Library and was a trustee of the Carter Center. On Monday in Atlanta of complications after surgery.