The short version: more than likely, the government will be able to refinance $7 trillion at decent rates as it gets its fiscal house in order. And rates, no surprise, will remain stubbornly low. But what would you rather have, low interest rates or fiscal Armageddon?

So what do investors do? Large cap, dividend paying blue chip stocks should be a cornerstone of a moderate investment portfolio. Investors should pay careful attention to valuation metrics such as forward P/E ratios and stock price relative to 52-week highs. Companies should have strong franchises, deep moat businesses with solid balance sheets and operating histories. Winners would include names such as Cisco Systems (Nasdaq: CSCO), Apple (Nasdaq: AAPL), Wal-Mart (NYSE: WMT) and pharma giant AbbVie (NYSE: ABBV).