Obama Returns to the DNC With a Chance to Rescue His Legacy From Trump

In his speech on Wednesday night, Mr. Obama offered validation for Mr. Biden, portraying him as “a brother” to him and “a man who learned early on to treat every person he meets with respect and dignity.” And in praising Mr. Biden’s record, Mr. Obama managed to frame his own legacy as well, describing how his vice president helped him pull the economy out of recession, expand health care and stem H1N1 and ebola outbreaks.

He also offered a passionate defense of voting rights at a time when Democrats fear that Republicans are trying to make it harder for Americans to cast ballots. “Do not let them take away your power,” Mr. Obama said. “Do not let them take away your democracy.”

Mr. Obama’s primary target, though, was Mr. Trump, his voice dripping with scorn as he said that while he never expected Mr. Trump to embrace his vision, he did hope that the next president “might show some interest in taking the job seriously.”

“But he never did,” Mr. Obama said. “For close to four years now, he has shown no interest in putting in the work, no interest in finding common ground, no interest in using the awesome power of his office to help anyone but himself and his friends, no interest in treating the presidency as anything but one more reality show that he can use to get the attention he craves.”

While he had a 36-year record in the Senate before becoming vice president, Mr. Biden has focused far more on the eight he spent in the White House, ostentatiously cloaking himself in the former president’s mantle and citing his service to Mr. Obama as a way to appeal to liberals, younger voters and especially African-Americans who helped him win key primaries.

Little wonder. Mr. Obama remains one of the most popular figures in American life. A new poll by Politico and Morning Consult found that 58 percent of Americans have a favorable view of the former president, the highest rating of any of the 28 political figures tested other than his wife, Michelle, who topped him with 60 percent. Mr. Biden, by contrast, was seen favorably by 46 percent and Mr. Trump by 39 percent.