Downtown Atlanta gets national debt clock

Clock arrives two weeks before Dems’ presidential debate.

In time for the 2020 elec-

tion season, a nonpartisan organization has launched a national debt clock in down- town Atlanta to raise awareness about the United States’ high debt.

New York-based Peter G. Peterson Foundation placed the LED billboard clock on Ted Turner Drive between Walton and Marietta streets, a block away from Centennial Olym-

pic Park, according to a news release. The clock displays the nearly the $23 trillion national debt as well as each American’s share of that large number, which is approximately $68,000. The foundation was founded in 2008 by former U.S. Secretary of Commerce

Peter G. Peterson to educate the public about the nation’s fiscal and economic issues.

“This isn’t just an issue for lawmakers in Washington, D.C.; it affects everyone across the country and especially younger generations,” said Michael A. Peterson, CEO of the foundation. “Our goal is to spark more conversations about the enormous magni- tude of our debt challenge and the importance of man- aging our debt.”

The clock comes to Atlanta two weeks before the Democratic presidential debate, which will be held at Tyler Perry Studios in southwest Atlanta. The Washington Post

and MSNBC will co-host the Nov. 20 debate.

The clock will remain in Atlanta indefinitely, the foundation said. Debt clocks have also been installed in Cleveland, Milwaukee and Las Vegas. Another clock will be installed in Des Moines, Iowa.

GETTY IMAGES FOR PETERSON FOUNDATION DUANE PROKOP / A national-debt billboard similar to this one in Cleveland has gone up in downtown Atlanta.