A few weeks ago, a freshman member of the House of Representatives sent a letter to President Obama demanding that he put forth a specific plan to reduce the national debt and reform entitlement programs. It’s probably time to talk about the political stunts over the past few months that have centered around raising the debt limit.

Remember that we reached our legal debt limit on May 16. Since the Treasury Department suspended investment in pension funds, we now have until August 2 before we exceed that limit. This past week, we saw House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-VA) storm out of budget discussions led by Vice President Joe Biden.

Additional money cannot be borrowed until the debt limit is raised by an act of Congress. Congressional Republicans made lots of noise last month — and continue to do so — about this issue, stating that the limit will not be raised until Obama delivers a plan of spending reform that cuts expenditures and does not raise taxes.

Representative Diane Black, R-Tenn., wrote in her letter that “[in] light of now multiple credit ratings agencies threatening to downgrade American bonds without significant long-term steps toward deficit reduction, it is time for the president to stop sitting on the sidelines of this debate.” That kind of statement does nothing to solve the problem. Rather, it only tosses the ball into another court.

The Constitution gives Congress, not the president, the power to appropriate money. Traditionally, presidents have been given the money they’ve asked for, no matter how reckless their appropriations, because their Congresses have given it. It is, further, the prerogative of the House of Representatives to write bills for raising revenue. For these reasons, it is unacceptable that members of Congress, especially Representatives, to demand that Obama act in their stead.

The presidency may be a position of leadership in this country, but the President acts as head of state and chief executive. The president may ask for policy and appropriations. They executive and legislative branches of government may not be distinct in countries like the United Kingdom, but they are in America. Executive officials hold no legislative power. “The executive Power shall be vested in a President,” the Constitution says. It goes on to say that “All legislative Powers granted herein shall be vested in a Congress of the United States.”

Congress makes laws, and the president carries them out faithfully. If members of Congress are dissatisfied with the policies and spending of the United States, they should introduce their bills accordingly, debate their merits on the floor in a candid exchange of ideas, and convince one another to act.

Instead of playing to the media and the people back home who voted them into office, they should practice politics among themselves and work together. And if the folks back home want something done, they should urge their representatives to take actions of their own.

Constitutionally, Congress acts independent of the presidency. The two branches don’t actually need to negotiate. The lawmaking happens on Capitol Hill, not in the White House. But in this day and age, the two negotiate and collaborate closely. When one party leaves those discussions, nothing happens.

Imagine a group of doctors administering medicine to a patient. They must agree with one another on the treatment. Now think of the consequences of one doctor, whose input and agreement are necessary, abandoning his fellow doctors. Surely, that doctor would be censured.

Abandoning the people of the United States to the inevitable isn’t acceptable behavior for any citizen, let alone the Majority Leader of the House of Representatives. He especially is supposed to cultivate this polity, not leave it to the vicissitudes of fate.

Time doesn’t stop for hesitant politicians. And if we wait for Aug. 2 to arrive, arrive it will. If that date arrives and we have done nothing to protect our credit, our credit will be damaged. Congresspeople playing pass the buck with powers delegated to them by the Constitution are abdicating their responsibilities and undermining the credibility of our nation.