Oh.

— James O'Brien (@mrjamesob) December 17, 2021

Chair of the 1922 committee today pic.twitter.com/6P8WlCsl5m

— Derek Bond (@derekbond) December 17, 2021

.@skynewsSam: Well, what a terrible night, minister.

Chairman of the Conservative Party: Booster, booster, booster, booster.

Rinse and repeat.#NorthShropshire

— Kay Burley (@KayBurley) December 17, 2021

It’s really not. Brexit in 2016 was a promise full of dreams. For a rural area in 2021 it’s turning into a nightmare with seasonal worker shortages, abattoir issues, truck driver shortages, export markets dropping, farm payment system change/disappointment.

Overpromised/lied to

— Andy Day (@Andyphilipday) December 17, 2021

I think Mr Gale has miscounted how many 'strikes' there have been already.

Failing to listen to, and understand, the public mood is key to why Conservatives lost North Shropshire.

It sounds like Mr Gale is still not listening and understanding.

— LDH Marketing (@LDHMarketing) December 17, 2021

61.5% voted centre left in a previously rock solid Tory stronghold. @CompassOffice have always said there’s a progressive majority in this country waiting to be mobilised – Not just to win an election but to transform our politics. Let this be a beginning. pic.twitter.com/BS9RhgNFMq

— Graham Simpson (@grahambsi) December 17, 2021

Oh, go on then. You can have this one, just this once. 😉

— Tim O'Connor (@timoconnorbl) December 17, 2021

Sense from those on the ground is that it’ll be close, one source from one of the campaigns saying it was neck and neck between Lib Dems and Cons earlier in the day.

My own sense from last week was that non-Conservative vote might not coalesce enough but we’ll see https://t.co/AcF24Ow3pX

— Lewis Goodall (@lewis_goodall) December 16, 2021

Remember this is a VERY leave seat, an older seat, historically Tory by reflex and in every way. There’s no way anyone else should really have a look in, even in terrible circumstances. That’s not to say we might not see an upset but that’s the context (whichever way it goes)

— Lewis Goodall (@lewis_goodall) December 16, 2021

Five hours until polls close for the North Shropshire by-election.

Are the Conservatives heading for defeat? Here's what we've been hearing on the ground:https://t.co/cfVETp8yNx pic.twitter.com/DRZ2N4wNuT

— Britain Elects (@BritainElects) December 16, 2021

Get those emails in!

1922 Committee leader says he will accept EMAILS of no confidence in the PM over Christmas meaning https://t.co/Kvk5cw806X

— Matt Toomer (@realMattToomer) December 16, 2021

Boris Johnson had an extraordinary ability to project himself as both a toff and an honorary member of the proletariat, writes @fotoole, but his supporters are beginning to see what he actually is: a middle-class opportunist on the make, putting on airs. https://t.co/kxwerxqoz3 pic.twitter.com/NutN48l0PB

— The New York Review of Books (@nybooks) December 16, 2021

Downing Street is denying reports that Boris Johnson attended a "party" in No 10 during spring last year. That development came after we recorded our latest video on the various party allegations, but we do cover more details on the quiz, the 18th Dec and Shaun Bailey's apology. pic.twitter.com/MeLHvLTO0f

— Ros Atkins (@BBCRosAtkins) December 16, 2021

👑Boris Johnson still says Brits don't have to cancel their Christmas parties… as the Queen axes hers 👑https://t.co/XqSaUsSh64

— Pippa Crerar (@PippaCrerar) December 16, 2021

COVID-19: Most cases now 'like severe cold' – and Omicron appears to produce 'fairly mild' illness, expert says https://t.co/iBcJDNyrSw

— Sky News (@SkyNews) December 16, 2021

Talked to @jonsnowC4 tonight about covid numbers. Made the point that given lags from infection to reporting, maybe 3 doublings of infections already baked in.

This means we have to get off this track – now. We can prevent infections next week & must cut contacts for 1 week. 1/2 pic.twitter.com/QgZ39xwy2u

— Prof. Christina Pagel (@chrischirp) December 16, 2021

Chancellor Rishi Sunak to return from US trip early over Covid concerns https://t.co/T23FpseS48

— BBC Politics (@BBCPolitics) December 16, 2021

Restaurants & bars are *already* closing in response to the omicron wave, and the ones remaining open are bleeding out from cancellations. Where's the financial support from government? Just because there isn't a lockdown doesn't mean that hospitality is actually being protected.

— Ash Sarkar (@AyoCaesar) December 16, 2021

France will restrict arrivals from Britain because of fast-spreading cases of the omicron variant, putting limits on reasons for traveling and requiring 48-hour isolation upon arrival. The new measures are expected to take effect over the weekend. https://t.co/gdCl4XUSGk

— AP Europe (@AP_Europe) December 16, 2021

Rather ironic that after months of the U.K. demanding that France control its borders to stop people coming over here France is now controlling its borders to stop us going there. #Omicron

— Brendan May (@bmay) December 16, 2021

The UK is also prepared to take a staged approach to working through Protocol issues with the initial focus on the most pressing practical issues.

— JPCampbellBiz (@JP_Biz) December 17, 2021

Biden on the Covid situation: "For the unvaccinated, we are looking at a winter of severe illness and death." pic.twitter.com/xJHnYkNtMq

— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) December 16, 2021

The #Omicron variant is surging in the US exponentially… CDC data shows that New York / New Jersey region is now over 10% Omicron of all #COVID19 cases. The rest of US is not far behind—likely dominant by Christmas 🎄 — please be careful during holidays.

Figure by @DrWilliamKu. pic.twitter.com/O5jterp49v

— Eric Feigl-Ding (@DrEricDing) December 16, 2021

It's like 2020 again in NYC with Covid numbers shooting way, way up. Lots of new cases, among vaccinated people. But no corresponding spike in hospitalizations or deaths. It creates this new unease. https://t.co/PuBaXlzFYG

— Michael Wilson (@MWilsonNYT) December 16, 2021

‘The Media Variant’ Hits New York City

“I began to tick off the last few days of media partying in my head and wondered if my migraine was more than the usual mid-week hangover.” https://t.co/kfkaxq3Rbx

— Damian Radcliffe (@damianradcliffe) December 16, 2021

🚨Well, I wrote about Omicron–what we know & what it means.

I feel the core problem is unchanged: The variant poses a much greater threat at the societal level than the individual one, making it the kind of problem the US has consistently flubbed. 1/ https://t.co/IRZqSbvC69

— Ed Yong is not here (@edyong209) December 16, 2021

Fauci: Omicron likely dominant in US in "few weeks," warns hospitals could be "overwhelmed" https://t.co/NLPefCkNzB pic.twitter.com/PFQgo2N536

— The Hill (@thehill) December 16, 2021

Oh, #Florida! Resident of The Villages crashes her golf cart after the #Christmas parade, shouts at EMTs "I'm not vaccinated!" and “Get me DeSantis!” (PS: Her name's Karen.) https://t.co/jbA2DmcQy8

— Craig Pittman (@craigtimes) December 16, 2021

Not a great day for Dem leadership

— BBB stalled
— immigration again knocked out of BBB
— no movement on voting rights

— Jake Sherman (@JakeSherman) December 16, 2021

read about it here first: https://t.co/7UQb8og87C

— Andy Duehren (@aduehren) December 16, 2021

There are two & only two Democrats opposed to reforming the filibuster: Sinema & Manchin. These two alone are preventing the only reform that might head off one-party autocracy in the US. https://t.co/1R4mooaCVg

— David Roberts (@drvolts) December 16, 2021

"Mark Meadows is in the middle of everything… What you see is this duality. One face saying we're going to do the reasonable thing, and another working with the president's allies to stoke his very worst impulses" – @ktbenner w/ @NicolleDWallace pic.twitter.com/CWRZPmf20H

— Deadline White House (@DeadlineWH) December 16, 2021

NEW — Jan. 6 committee tells 'Coup PowerPoint' author: Hi! We'd love to see all your documents about this and have you come sit for a deposition under oath.https://t.co/wAYoJPG9fj

— S.V. Dáte (@svdate) December 17, 2021

And, the worst part is, NOBODY CARES!
This breathtaking, unbelievable corruption and bastardization of our political system is just shrugged off. The same public and media that lost its shit over Clinton's sex life and Hillary's emails is just… not caring about any of this.

— Slava Malamud 🇺🇦🇮🇱 (@SlavaMalamud) December 16, 2021

NEW POD: At the last-minute, the Senate tries to pass voting rights legislation while new details emerge about the insurrection, @ASlavitt joins to talk about the Omicron wave, and @danpfeiffer and @jonfavs discuss the media’s role in defending democracy. https://t.co/QxKfUiVeZB pic.twitter.com/4T8Neqfokd

— Pod Save America (@PodSaveAmerica) December 16, 2021

A Delaware judge has denied Fox News' motion to dismission the lawsuit from Dominion Voting Systems relating to the network's coverage of alleged election fraud in the 2020 election. https://t.co/YfYryJ3nTP

— ErikWemple (@ErikWemple) December 16, 2021

Today would be a good day for Stephen Breyer to announce his retirement. https://t.co/4uvNdv8nsF

— Miranda Yaver, PhD (@mirandayaver) December 16, 2021