Combs, who throughout the evening referred to the Declaration of Independence as his date, said he brought along the document to remind young people of its significance.
He borrowed the document from the movie and television producer Norman Lear, who also founded People for the American Way, a liberal advocacy group. Lear bought it in June 2000 for US$8 million at an auction Sotheby's held on eBay.
Of the 200 copies of the Declaration of Independence that were made in 1776, only 25 are known to still be in existence, said Mary McGuire, the assistant director of Declare Yourself, a nonpartisan political organization that Lear founded in 2003.
Like nervous parents on prom night, McGuire and three armed security guards chaperoned the Declaration, hovering over it for much of the evening. McGuire explained its famous provenance.
"In 1989 a guy in Pennsylvania went to a flea market and bought a picture because he liked the frame," she said as Combs cradled the framed beauty. "He bought it for only US$4, opened it up and found a folded up copy of the Declaration."
Combs, who in recent years has become more civic minded, said he was going to promote the idea of voting as heavily as he would market a Biggie Smalls album: "We're going to make this election the hottest, most sexiest thing ever."
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