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Tavis: Both of our next guests have been on this program before. They don't need much of an introduction. You know Arianna Huffington, syndicated columnist, best-selling author, 'Fools and Fanatics.' I still love that title. Speaking of great titles, Donna Brazile, as you know, helped run the Gore campaign. Her latest book, 'Cooking with Grease,' a Democratic political consultant. Nice to see you both again.

Donna Brazile: Good to see you.

Tavis: So, we're out of here basically after tonight. Did the Democrats achieve, Arianna, what they came to do?

Arianna Huffington: I really believe they did. I really think that the strategy of offering the Democratic alternative moral vision for America, as opposed to simply concentrating on all that is wrong with the Bush administration, was brilliant, it worked. Other than Al Sharpton, everybody stayed on message. And Al was fantastic. People loved it. It was great, but nobody believed that they had to absolutely obey the rules keeping schedule, but on the whole it worked, yes.

Tavis: Speaking on staying on message, when I saw you the first day of the convention, your hair was different. Your hair was straight, now it's curly, so that means your hair didn't stay on message, you're a flip-flopper.

Huffington: Wow, no, it means that it rained and poured yesterday, as you know.

Tavis: Oh, alright.

Huffington: So by the time I got to my hotel, I decided forget trying to blow dry it straight.

Tavis: Donna, your hair looks great.

Brazile: Well thank you.

Tavis: Speaking of great, how great did the Democrats do this week?

Brazile: Well, I think the party met the challenge this week to present a positive message of hope, opportunity, security for all Americans. I think we had four great nights of speakers. I didn't think anyone could top Bill Clinton on Monday night, but then Barack Obama came, and he topped Bill Clinton, and of course Sen. Edwards gave a great dynamic speech, laying out the substance in a foundation, and Sen. Kerry, I think, brought it all home.

Tavis: How important was it to keep Clinton and Kerry as far apart as possible so those comparisons would not be made, Arianna?

Huffington: Well, you know, they are two very different political leaders. I believe that John Kerry has the potential to be a great president. He will never be a great candidate the way Bill Clinton is, but you know, it's not a prerequisite for being a great president. So in serious times like these, his experience, his biography, his leadership are what the country needs, and the fact that Bill Clinton is unbelievably charismatic and a great speaker and communicator is neither here nor there. I think that the great moment for me that I'm taking away from this convention is Barack Obama. This for me was something truly emotional. And, I was watching it with Rob Riener from California, and he said to me, 'This is the first black president.'

Tavis: Yeah.

Huffington: So, people are walking around just--

Tavis: Bill Clinton might argue with that. Bill Clinton said he's the first black president.

Brazile: That's right. That's right.

Tavis: But that's another issue. Let me ask you right quick, Arianna, before I go back to Donna here, whether or not, in terms of themes that Mr. Kerry hit upon tonight, did he hit the right themes?

Huffington: Well, he focused on national security and focused on the need to portray himself as tough enough, strong enough, experienced enough to keep us safe. That's a good theme, but I also believe that the themes that Obama touched, you know, the need to be inspired, to emphasize the fact that we are one America, which is also the John Edwards theme. It's critical, coming out of this convention. There was a lot of soaring rhetoric in Kerry's speech. It's very important that he keeps repeating that. It's not just about national security. That's number one, but it's not number one, two, three, and four. People are very worried about their own jobs, their own health care, their own daily issues.

Tavis: This is a strange question Donna to ask on day four, the last day, but does anybody care? Does it matter? Was anybody watching? The networks didn't cover much of this, as you know, in prime time. The conventional wisdom is folks don't really tune into these races for president until after Labor Day anyway, does it matter?

Brazile: Oh, absolutely. Over the last four days, the Democratic Party and all of its allies have experienced just a resurgence of energy. People are calling, they want to volunteer, they want to contribute money, they want to go to a battleground state. So this has been very good for the Democratic Party. And let me just add, in addition to Barack Obama, I thought we had just a beautiful array of speakers; and tonight, seeing Sen. Kerry's crewmen come back with, sort of, a you know, reunion of sorts, people are leaving inspired.

Tavis: What I know about John Kerry basically, even after this speech tonight, is that he served honorably in the public arena for 30 years now. He is a Vietnam vet. I'm still not so sure, Arianna, that I got a chance to see into his soul; that I really know who this guy is. That's important to me as a voter, to know this guy. Am I going to get to know him between now and November?

Huffington: Yes, but I think what Max Cleland did was very important because here you had somebody who really sacrificed his body for his country, who gave Kerry the most unbelievably moving endorsement and, starting with the fact that Kerry made a decision which even Bill Clinton acknowledged, he made the decision to go to Vietnam when he didn't have to, because he was privileged enough to get out of it. And that to me is a defining moment and when he tries to define this election in terms of service, in terms of duty, he actually has earned the right to do that, so it's not just words.

Tavis: Alright; so Donna, tell me what you expect. This is some pre-game quarterbacking as opposed to Monday morning quarterbacking. Tell me what you expect the Republicans to do in New York City, because we'll be there as well, now that we've seen what the Democrats have done here in Boston.

Brazile There's no question they're going to try to re-package this Bush-Cheney ticket. They're going to try, as they did back in 2000, to go--to become the compassionate and conservative party again--where they appeal to independent and swing voters, a party of tolerance; when we all know there's a different record that's out there. They're going to try to respond to some of the charges that were leveled against them at this convention, but you know, I don't think they'll succeed.

Tavis: Arianna, what do you expect out of the Republican convention?

Huffington: I completely agree with Donna. It's going to be back to 2000, and they probably will hope that the American public has amnesia and doesn't remember what happened in the last four years and how the whole term 'compassion' was about, and I *(inaudible) present speeches. It's barely mentioned. You know, what is the recurring theme? Threat. Imminent threat. Grave threat. Approaching threat. Basically, I believe this election, as has been clear in so many of his speeches, is going to be between those who vote their hopes and those who vote their fears. And if George Bush manages to scare us enough, then people will stay with the incumbent. So that's the key.

Tavis: I got 30 seconds left. Tell me Donna whether or not the theme that was put forth this week is going to play with the American public between now and November: strong at home, respected in the world.

Brazile: Yes it will, because there's a lot of substance. This is no meaningless sound bite. It is full of substance, full of hope, full of optimism. That's the new message of the Democratic Party.

Tavis: Democratic consultant Donna Brazile, thank you. Arianna, syndicated columnist, nice to see you as well. Thank you both; and I'm sure we'll be talking once or twice, maybe a few times between now and November. See you soon. That's our show for tonight. We've had a great time being here tonight talking to Arianna, and Donna, and Al Sharpton, and Barack Obama. I hope you enjoyed the program. We'll see you tomorrow night. Until then, thanks for watching, and from Boston, as always, keep the faith.