House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) and his fellow House Republicans upheld their responsibility when they passed the Limit, Save, Grow Act. It's a reasonable and responsible measure to secure the fiscal future of our country. Now, President Joe Biden needs to uphold his responsibility and meet with McCarthy to forge an agreement to extend the debt ceiling.

The House Republican legislation does legitimately make changes that would save taxpayers around $4.8 trillion . Still, we shouldn’t applaud them too much because previous overspending due to COVID-19 alters the numbers. The legislation does cap federal spending, however. And it undoes Biden’s student loan bailout and puts a serious check on Washington’s recent wasteful spending.

Perhaps most important is the fact that the Limit, Save, Grow Act raises the debt ceiling to ensure the federal government can continue to pay the debt it owes, averting a potential debt crisis. By increasing the borrowing limit, it defuses the threat of a catastrophic default that would reverberate across the nation’s economy. No American benefits from such a scenario and Republicans understand what’s at stake.

The last time the nation's credit rating was downgraded was 11 years ago when the government defaulted. Even flirting with a debt default risks another downgrade. Just last week, Fitch Ratings noted that "repeated near-default episodes brought on by debt limit debates could erode confidence [in] the U.S. government’s repayment capacity." A government default is more than a political statement - there are market repercussions. Interest rates could rise, the stock market could plummet, and jobs could be lost.

On the other side of Pennsylvania Avenue, they seem to want to play politics. Instead of pushing the Senate to pass a bill, Biden has refused to even discuss spending reforms like the one the House GOP has put forward. Biden knows that this "my-way-or-the-highway" approach is unreasonable – back when he was Sen. Biden, he advocated spending reforms be attached to raising the debt ceiling. The federal government continues to spend more than it takes in, a dangerous fiscal path that is not sustainable. Just last year, the country’s debt-to-GDP ratio was 97% — and that number is rising. The ballooning federal debt is a serious threat to the economy.

Avoiding a government default must be a top priority for both sides. House Republicans have crafted a plan which serves as a step in the right direction. Now it’s up to Biden and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) to step up.

Charles Sauer ( @CharlesSauer ) is a contributor to the Washington Examiner's Beltway Confidential blog. He is the president of the Market Institute.