Carl S. Whillock, 79; a Special Assistant to President Clinton

Carl Simpson Whillock, 79, a special assistant to President Clinton and a former state official in Arkansas, died Nov. 7 in Little Rock. Whillock died of an apparent heart attack.

Whillock, who was with Clinton at the beginning of his political career, served as special assistant to the president for agriculture, trade and food assistance from 1997 to 2001.

In 1974, Clinton, then a young law professor, sought out Whillock when he considered running for Congress.

Whillock introduced Clinton to political friends in every town in the Ozarks. Clinton lost the race but would later credit his political success to that effort.

A native of Scotland, Ark., Whillock served in the Navy during World War II. He earned his bachelor’s and master’s degrees at the University of Arkansas and later received a law degree from George Washington University. He was twice elected to the state House of Representatives and was later a prosecuting attorney in Arkansas’ 14th Judicial District. For 16 years, he headed the Arkansas Electric Cooperatives Corp., which produced electricity for much of the state’s countryside and small towns.