By the way, a lot of big name sports fans here in the nation's capital got their Super Bowl predictions wrong. President Obama not only declared that the Colts had to be favored, he did it in a CBS interview during the pre-game buildup.
The former Treasury secretary, Henry Paulson; the former Federal Reserve chairman, Alan Greenspan; they crunched the numbers. They also went with the Colts.
Armchair quarterbacks online now are second-guessing some of their economic forecasts, I suppose, as well.
And the former FEMA director, Michael Brown -- remember "heck of a Brown -- Brownie job?"
Remember that one?
He went with the Colts, too. That didn't surprise a lot of Katrina survivors in New Orleans, who aren't big fans of the former FEMA head.
Let's talk a little bit more about the Super Bowl win, what it means.
Our senior political analyst, David Gergen, is joining us -- David, it -- it's a powerful, powerful symbolic gesture for the people of New Orleans and the entire Gulf Coast. And God knows, they deserve it.
DAVID GERGEN, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL ANALYST, FORMER PRESIDENTIAL ADVISER: Absolutely, Wolf. And I -- I must say, I'm among those who got this wrong. I was -- I thought the Patriots might, you know, revive and go all the way. That's my team. So there are a lot of us in that category.
But, Wolf, that's what -- partly what makes this so special. You know, when Drew Brees said after the game, he -- the team felt -- the Saints felt that the entire nation was pulling for them, that's largely true. A lot of America felt very -- has felt very emotionally about New Orleans.
And I think this was a -- a very special game. Not only was it a terrific game -- they -- both teams played exceptionally well and with a gutsy coach on the New Orleans side -- but it was one of those special moments when the -- I think this is the best feel good moment for this country in -- in well over a year.
We've had a lot of pretty bleak news recently. Here's a team in a city that's -- that has come back from just a terrible place. And they overcame these enormous obstacles. Drew Brees, nobody thought he would ever be much of a quarterback -- six foot tall, he's below the height.
You know, when he had an injured -- a terrible injury four years ago, about the same time as Katrina, people thought he was out. No team wanted him.
The Saints wanted him. And he devoted himself to the Saints and -- and the team devoted themselves to New Orleans. And here they won this special victory. I think it's an inspirational story not only for New Orleans and the region, it's really an inspirational story for the country, because when -- when people have got their backs to the wall and they come together and rally and work as they have, if New Orleans can do this, the Saints can do this, why can't America do this?
BLITZER: Yes. I mean, it's one of these stories that transcends sports and...
GERGEN: Absolutely.
BLITZER: ...and makes all of us feel a little bit better about what's going on, as you correctly point out, at a time when we only seem to be getting bad news and even worse news.
GERGEN: Absolutely. And I -- you know, and we'll hear, I'm sure, more from -- from James and Mary -- Matalin and James Carville, as -- because they're so closely involved in New Orleans. I'm sure we'll hear more on CNN about them.
But, well, you know, in New Orleans, there -- there are real sparks of a revival there. A ton of kids have -- have swept into New Orleans to work block by block, house by house, to improve them. The -- they've got a new -- new charter schools that are flowering. They've got a terrific new superintendent of schools, Paul Vallas has come there.
They've just elected -- black and white voters together -- elected Mitch Landrieu to be -- be the mayor. He's a wonderfully strong, inspirational leader. Everybody thinks he may be northeast of the best mayors in decades. And now along comes this victory. And it -- you can just sense this is something that can bring a town and a region back. And it's the kind of spirit of -- it's the spirit of America re -- revisited. And I think it will give -- I think it will give fresh hope to a lot of Americans around the country.
BLITZER: I think you're right.
And -- and Mary Matalin and James Carville, they're going to be joining us here in THE SITUATION ROOM live later, so we'll get their thoughts. Obviously, they're thrilled. They recently moved back to New Orleans. And I guess this is about as good as it gets for them.
All right. Thanks very much, David Gergen.
GERGEN: Thanks, Wolf.
BLITZER: Appreciate it.