“That could have gone better,” the president said of the health insurance site launch. “In 2008 my slogan was ‘yes we can.’ In 2013 it was control, alt, delete.’ “

Mr. McHale pointed out it was hard to quantify how terrible a launch the site really had because it serves as the basis for analogies.

“The website is now what they use to describe other bad things,” Mr. McHale said.

Even former Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius made a brief appearance, stepping on stage to assist the president in restarting a frozen video screen — a common problem when the insurance site first launched.