The New York Times reported this weekend Missouri Representative Blaine Luetkemeyer was one of the lawmakers who put statements drafted by lobbyists in the Congressional Record on the House health care bill.  The Congressional Record is a running log the House of Representatives keeps of statements made on the House floor.  South Carolina Representative Joe Wilson and Luetkemeyer put a similar statement in the Congressional Record.

The statement read, "One of the reasons I have long supported the U.S. biotechnology industry is that it is a homegrown success story that has been an engine of job creation in this country."

The New York Times article alleged that lobbyists for Genentech, a biotechnology company, passed the statements to the Congressmen who then inserted them in the Congressional Record.

Luetkemeyer's press secretary Paul Sloca said this incident is the first time the Congressman used a lobbyist's statement in the Congressional Record.

Sloca added, "This is nothing Blaine would not have said."

Professor Marvin Overby, chair of the Political Science department at MU, said putting lobbyists' statements in the Record is a common practice.  Overby says congressional staff, constituents and lobbyists make statements that are put in the Congressional Record.

"A lot of it is fairly trivial stuff in the grand scheme of making legislation.  But it can be very important for making constituents feel important and valued," said Overby.

Overby said with 435 Representatives in Congress, Congressmen are given limited time to speak on the floor and other statements are inserted in the Record at a later time. Overby said it's common for the statements put in the Recorder at a later date to come from lobbyists.