The preliminary information suggests that holiday spending has been unexpectedly robust in spite of the struggling real economy. It has been fueled, not by right-wing blue-collar workers, but by relatively affluent people, primarily from blue states, with hefty investments in the soaring stock market.
In other words, the dollar store economy has come roaring back, which is exactly what Trump supposedly is trying to avoid. The political survival of Republicans consequently depends on the continued spending of the information economy elites that Trump purports to despise.
That’s a paradox. It’s also a lesson, if you take it the right way.