AND THE PEACE DIVIDEND HAS BARELY KICKED IN:

There's no denying it: things are looking a little better for the economy.

More money is coming into the Treasury, the government is spending a little less, the unemployment rate is slowly moving down, and Wall Street is doing great. And the cherry on top: On Thursday, the once-embattled mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac announced that they would return a combined $66.4 billion to the U.S. Treasury.

"I think it's great news," said Moody's Analytics' chief economist Mark Zandi. "It reflects the steadily improving economy, but also the tax increases and government spending cuts that have been implemented."

But good economic news is tantamount to a loosening of the proverbial noose around the necks of Washington lawmakers, potentially postponing a deadline that could force quicker action on some major issues including tax reform and entitlement reform.

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