Former Vice President Al Gore may not be attending the Democratic National Convention in Philadelphia this week, but he is for the first time endorsing Hillary Clinton for president.
Gore in a statement Monday cited what he called Clinton's qualifications and experience to meet challenges facing the nation and the world, "including, especially, the global climate crisis."
Gore's office had earlier said that unspecified "obligations in Tennessee" would prevent him from attending. Gore spoke on behalf of Democratic nominees John Kerry in 2004 and Barack Obama in 2008, but he did not attend the 2012 convention.
Gore was a Tennessee U.S. senator before joining Bill Clinton's presidential ticket in 1992. Gore lost the 2000 presidential race to Republican George W. Bush.
