Truth to power: Obama makes 'Deflategate' joke in front of Patriots.

Here's the life of a president: In the morning President Barack Obama spoke inside the White House and expressed deep regret for theaccidental killing of an American and Italian hostage held by al Qaeda during U.S. drone strikes.

In the afternoon he headed outside to congratulate the Super Bowl champion New England Patriots on their accomplishment.

The leader of the free world did not shirk away from his opportunity to rib at the most powerful football team on the planet when he made direct mention of the controversy surrounding the Patriots during their championship run: allegations they played with deflated footballs during their AFC Championship win over the Indianapolis Colts.

"I usually tell a lot of jokes at these events," he said. "But with the Patriots in town I was worried that 11 out of 12 of them would fall flat. (groans, laughter) All right, all right. That whole story got blown a little out of proportion."

Patriots coach Bill Belichick gave the President a thumbs down.

Patriots all-star tight-end Rob Gronkowski was quoted by reporter for the Boston Herald as being none too pleased either.

News Courtesy: www.cnn.com