Kentucky Rep. Thomas Massie wants to 'induce anxiety' with wearable debt clock

Northern Kentucky U.S. Rep. Thomas Massie wants to remind everyone the U.S. debt is over $31.4 trillion and rising. So, he's wearing a custom made debt clock on his lapel to the State of the Union address Tuesday, reports say.

The Republican congressman custom designed the small copper ticker, which he said on Twitter took more than 500 lines of code. The Massachusetts Institute of Technology graduate also added that it connects to the U.S. treasury website for updates every day.

Massie has been an outspoken critic of the national debt since he was elected in 2012. He did not immediately respond to an emailed request for comment on the ticker. But he told Fox Business, "I built it to induce anxiety among my colleagues."

The U.S. reached its debt ceiling in January and will have to cut spending if it's not raised, according to USA Today reporting. The government will default on bills and existing obligations if congress does not raise the debt ceiling.

Though Massie has sometimes been at odds with other Republicans in Congress, he was recently appointed to the powerful House Rules Committee and a subcommittee on Weaponization of the Federal Government.

This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: KY Rep. Thomas Massie creates wearable debt clock for lapel