House and Senate lawmakers are deeply divided over whether to give Governor Deval Patrick the authority to appoint an interim US senator to Edward M. Kennedy’s seat, even as top Democrats ramp up their lobbying for a measure that could come up for a vote as early as Thursday.

State Senator Scott Brown, the Republican frontrunner for Edward M. Kennedy’s US Senate seat, asked Governor Deval Patrick yesterday to investigate whether state employees spent public time and resources researching if Brown could run for office while serving in the National Guard.

When Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick had a hip operation, the 53-year-old joined a growing number of baby boomers who are opting for joint replacement surgery sooner rather than later.

House members are “hopeful” about passing legislation allowing Gov. Deval Patrick to name an interim U.S. Senator, according to the House chair of the committee reviewing the bill, while a critic of the bill says its passage would undermine efforts to boost lagging confidence in government.

By Andrea Estes, Globe Staff State Senator Scott Brown, the Republican frontrunner for the late Edward Kennedy's US Senate seat, is asking Governor Deval Patrick to investigate whether state employees on state time researched whether Brown could run for Congress...

Gov. Deval Patrick is at it again - stacking a state board with one-sided appointments in violation of the law, critics say. Non-union sheet-metal installers are so mad...

Gov. Deval Patrick is asking federal agricultural officials to declare the cool, wet summer a disaster for most Massachusetts farms, making growers eligible for up to $500,000...

BOSTON - Gov. Deval L. Patrick is asking federal agricultural officials to declare the cool, wet summer a disaster for most Massachusetts farms, making growers eligible for up to $500,000 in low-interest government loans.