Candidate Trump’s Horoscope

Donald Trump is at the top of polls among more than a dozen Republican presidential candidates for 2016, despite his divisive comments about illegal immigrants, Senator John McCain’s war record and other issues. With Mars rising in Leo in sextile to his Sun in the 10th house, his arrogance and aggressiveness have gotten him ahead; people also appear to be attracted to his candor.

Jupiter in Leo conjoins Trump’s Mars toward the end of July and conjoins his Ascendant in early August, keeping him center stage and giving him ample opportunity to create drama and attract attention.

Trump also has Mercury in Cancer in his horoscope, closely squaring his Neptune. This makes for someone who thinks emotionally and may misunderstand things. His rhetoric has made him popular on reality TV and his gut instincts have earns him billions. Yet as several of his sponsors have now agreed, his judgment is flawed. But Neptune is a transcendental planet, and its aspects can create a resonance with the mass mind. Transiting Neptune through Trump’s 7th house exactly trines his Mercury in August, so he should continue to be heard by a wide audience.

Donald Trump’s natal Jupiter conjoins his 3rd house cusp and trines his Sun and Uranus, giving him an ease of expression and easy success. But Saturn in his 11th house also squares his Jupiter, limiting the extent to which people will ultimately choose to listen. Saturn traditionally rules his Aquarius 7th house, and Jupiter is the co-ruler since the sign of Pisces makes up most of his 7th. So both 7th house rulers square one another. We have seen this dynamic play out in his personal relationships (he’s been married three times and divorced twice).

But the 7th house also rules public opinion. As transiting Saturn stations in square to Trump’s Ascendant from late July to early August, he will need to adjust his message to the realities of the situation. Saturn will exactly square his Ascendant and 7th house cusp in September, focusing his energies but also limiting his success with spontaneous one-liners. He will have to learn to temper his speech if he wants to stick to his presidential goals.

Donald Trump was born on June 14, 1946 at 10:54 AM in Jamaica, Queens, according to his Birth Certificate and rated AA Astrodatabank.

To Pluto, Astrologically

NASA scientists on the news talk as if it’s Star Trek: the first mission to a new planet in an exploratory spacecraft and the greatest distance ever flown – nearly 3 billion miles from earth. Their voyage to Pluto culminates on July 14, 2015 as the New Horizons craft reports on its closest encounter with Pluto.

The mission began in 2001 when it was approved, and surged on January 19, 2006 as New Horizons lifted off from Cape Canaveral on its long journey. Of course, within months, scientists had officially demoted Pluto to the status of a dwarf planet, but I guess astrologers already knew why Pluto has an ironic sense of humor.

What’s happening with the horoscope of Pluto as scientists learn more about it? Pluto was discovered on February 18, 1930 at approximately 4:00 PM in Flagstaff, Arizona (documented time, rated A on Astrodatabank).

As the news stories multiply, transiting Jupiter in Leo trines the discovery chart’s Midheaven and transiting Uranus stations a few degrees from it. Everybody’s suddenly excited about Pluto, and its reputation is getting a boost.

The discovery chart has the Sun in Aquarius conjunct Venus in Pisces, both part of a T-square with oppositions to Neptune and squares to Jupiter. It looks like this oddball little planet is just often misunderstood.

Transiting Saturn in Scorpio stations in close square to the discovery chart’s Sun at the time of New Horizons’ closest approach, and quickly activates all the planets in the T-square. NASA is looking deeper at Pluto, but in a reductive manner, and may devalue it further. As they take time to analyze the spacecraft’s data, transiting Pluto will oppose the discovery chart’s natal Pluto in 2016, so our understanding of Pluto could still be transformed. The combined influence of hard-core Saturn in Scorpio and Pluto in Capricorn should make the take-way some pragmatic facts.

I first saw the Pluto discovery horoscope in Noel Tyl’s How to Personalize the Outer Planets. The late Jeff Jawer wrote a fascinating article about the discoveries of the outer planets in this book, noting that all of them have the Moon in Scorpio along with hard Saturn aspects! It’s well worth a read (though Jawer used a different time for Pluto’s discovery and gave no information as to its source).

Pop Astro

Astrology got a lot of press in the 60s, but in 1967 the familiar song, “The Age of Aquarius,” had it wrong. “When the Moon is in the seventh house and Jupiter aligns with Mars, then peace will guide the planets and love will steer the stars” is nothing but New Age gobbledygook! Any astrologer knows that Jupiter only heightens Mars’ war-like nature.

But we now have Echosmith’s song, “Bright,” which makes much more astrological sense. The singer is in love and says, “Did you and Jupiter conspire to get me?” Very appropriate since Jupiter may bring us luck and help expand our lives with a new relationship.

She goes on to say that, “I think you and the Moon and Neptune got it right, ‘cause now I’m shining bright.” This line captures the warm, happy feeling of being in love that the emotional, dreamy planets, the Moon and Neptune, can convey. The singer says, “I get lost in your eyes,” and “You make what doesn’t matter fade to gray,” both of which we may associate with Neptune’s ability to heighten our senses and transcend physical reality.

I guess we’ve progressed a little in the last 45 years! “Bright” is about observing the night sky (astronomy) but also the underlying suggestion that the planets are influencing our lives (astrology!). And the symbolism the lyricists chose is perfectly appropriate.

Neptune and Racial Identity

Civil rights activist Rachel Dolezal, who claimed to be African American, resigned her position as President of the Spokane chapter of the NAACP on Monday after her parents revealed her on nationwide TV as a white woman. Neptune is the planet of deception and misrepresentation, and we find plenty of it in Dolezal’s horoscope.

Rachel Dolezal was born in Lincoln County, Montana on November 12, 1977. The Moon conjunct Neptune in Sagittarius created confusion regarding her family background. With black adoptive siblings and an African American ex-husband and child, there was diversity among her family members (Moon in Sagittarius). But Neptune also blurred the lines of her own personal identification.

Mercury is in Sagittarius, the sign of inter-cultural exchange, and with three planets in this sign, it’s not surprising that she identified with those of different backgrounds. Sagittarius also rules education, journalism and activism, and Dolezal was also a university instructor with a weekly newspaper column, both positions she’s also lost.

Jupiter, the ruler of Sagittarius, is placed in Cancer in her horoscope, the sign of its exaltation, making it one of her strongest planets. She gained success by speaking out for racial equality and civil rights. But since Mercury is closely quincunx her Jupiter, she went too far, as both Sagittarius and Jupiter may do, in actually describing herself as African American.

Transiting Neptune in Pisces was stationary and squaring Dolezal’s Sagittarius Moon when her true racial identity was outed. While Neptune often deceives us, it can also bring to light earlier misconceptions. Mercury was stationary-direct at the same time, and the news media leapt on the story, correcting the record.

In her birth chart, Dolezal has Saturn squaring her Sun in Scorpio. Transiting Saturn recently conjoined her Mercury and was nearly exactly squaring her natal Saturn at the time she lost her jobs. Saturn is often the antidote to Neptune as it brings us down to earth. Hard Saturn transits can alter our position and status, especially when they’re not legitimately earned, and particularly for someone with a challenging natal Saturn. Rachel Dolezal, now 37, will have to reinvent herself once again.

The Washington Post included an image of Dolezal’s birth certificate on their website, here

The Retrograde Diaries — Episode 5

Is it Episode 5 already? Or only Episode 4? Actually, it’s probably Episode 100+, I just haven’t written them all down yet.

I continue to feel the stress and strain of Mercury retrograde. The current one may be more confusing with Mercury also squaring Neptune. Here are a few of my typically mixed-up Mercury retrograde experiences of the past few weeks.

I went to see the eye doctor. The receptionist was speaking on a headphone and I couldn’t tell if she was talking to me or the person on the phone. Our conversation was a typical Mercury retrograde communications challenge:

She: Can I have your referral?
Me: I don’t need a referral with this insurance.
She: Let me see your Medicaid card then.
Me: It’s not Medicaid. I have a regular Obamacare policy. You should have it in your system.
She: We need your referral.
Me: I don’t need a referral with this policy. Last time it went through with no problem. (Of course, the last time – no Mercury retrograde!)
She: Well, we have to have it to protect ourselves. Who is your primary care physician?
Me: I don’t have one right now.

More questions seemed to follow, but I soon realized she was again talking to her mouthpiece phone and not to me. I sat back down. A little while later she called me again as she couldn’t find me in the system. Then she realized that my insurance had my middle initial but they did not. Why this should be such a problem, I don’t know.

The receptionist was updating her database, which is a good Mercury retrograde task, but she was also speaking too loud since she had the headphones on. She was very pro-active and continued to loudly call out to other patients, apparently having difficulty verifying their insurance as well. One had to confirm her address and birthday. Another her birth place.

There were no problems with my appointment and everything went smoothly. Until I made a follow-up appointment and the receptionist warned that next time I really MUST bring a referral!

David Letterman and Saturn

David Letterman said goodbye to late-night television after his final Late Show on May 20, 2015. Saturn’s aspects augur predictable change, and Saturn transiting Dave’s 7th house of partnerships, contracts and the public was exactly trine his natal Saturn in the 4th house of security, stability and endings. Transiting Saturn will exactly trine his natal Mars in Aries in his 12th in a few weeks, creating a grand trine. In keeping with Saturn, this was an organized change that was well-known in advance.

The transiting Uranus-Pluto square also has something to do with Letterman’s career transition. Pluto through his 9th house of broadcasting is sextiling his Venus (exact in a few weeks). Venus placed in the 11th how shows a transformation in his colleagues, associates and friends as Pluto activates it. Another flowing aspect, it indicates a smooth development. The 11th house also rules our hopes and wishes for the future, so his goals have changed.

Transiting Uranus will station near a conjunction with Dave’s Aries Sun in July, breaking him away from his dynamic career path and into something completely new. It will exactly conjoin his Sun and square his Midheaven in 2016. Since Uranus promises new vistas and unexpected developments, the talk-show host should have some notable events in his life and career – things will certainly not be dull!

Letterman was born on April 12, 1947 at 6:00 am in Indianapolis (rated “A” on Astrodatabank).

Get It?

I woke up and turned on the radio. The BBC was interviewing some foreign English speakers and I couldn’t understand a word. I changed the station and found a preachy Sunday sermon that put me back to sleep. I’m suddenly getting all kinds of calls from survey-takers and recorded marketers. I recently wrote some checks that bounced.

Of course, these kinds of things could happen any time. But why all of them at once? And why now? This month, Mercury squares Neptune, turns retrograde, then squares Neptune again. This is an astrological influence well beyond your typical Mercury retrograde mishaps and misunderstandings. And it’ll repeat itself all over again when Mercury turns direct in June and squares Neptune once again.

But now that we’re aware of it, we can try really hard to be sure we understand exactly what’s going on. Mercury is in Gemini, so logic should prevail. Neptune is in Pisces, so our intuition can be strong, too. It’s the point where they intersect that creates blind spots.

Repeat back what someone told you, just in case. Double check the e-mail recipients before clicking “send.” Print out the directions – don’t assume you’ll remember them. And write down your dreams – they’ll make more sense later on!

Billy Joel’s Saturn Children

Taurean singer Billy Joel and his partner Alexis Roderick recently announced that they are expecting a baby this summer. Joel’s only other child, Alexa Ray, is 29 years old. This is astrologically significant since it indicates the return of a Saturn cycle for Billy Joel and having children. (Most women, of course, couldn’t accomplish this feat without massive hormonal intervention.)

At the time of Joel’s announcement, Saturn was at 4 Sagittarius, transiting his 5th house of children. Alexa Ray was born on December 29, 1985, when Saturn was just under 5 Sagittarius. The new baby will be born at around the time of Saturn’s station at 28 Scorpio 17, squaring Joel’s natal Saturn at 29-1/2 Leo, and less than 6 degrees from the exact place that Saturn transited when Alexa Ray was born, still in his 5th house.

While not technically exact, this is an excellent, straightforward example of the repetitive nature of Saturn’s transit cycles. Though most people will not experience such a striking repetition of similar events!

Billy Joel was born on May 9, 1949 at 9:30 AM in the Bronx, rated AA (from his birth certificate) on Astrodatabank.

Hillary Announces Run

Hillary Clinton announced her run for the 2016 presidential race on April 12, 2015 at around 3:02 pm*. This becomes the natal horoscope for her campaign, and we can analyze the development and possible outcome of the campaign with this chart. An event chart like this one is read like a horary.

The Ascendant is 0 Virgo – with the suggestion of it being “too soon.” Fair enough – it’s a kick-off announcement a year and a half before the election. The Ascendant rules Hillary herself – the party initiating the event. Virgo is ruled by Mercury in the 9th combust the Sun. Hillary’s ruler is elevated in the horoscope, but the Sun rules her 12th house – her liabilities. Her current message may be obscured by previous questions about her official e-mails and other voter concerns. However the campaign should be able to outpace these issues as Mercury moves away from the Sun by the end of April.

The Sun conjoins both Mercury and Uranus in Aries in the 9th house. Talk about a world-wide announcement! This one packs a punch with the Sun exalted in Aries. And the Uranus-style notice was made with e-mails, in an online video and on Twitter.

Venus in the 10th ruling the Taurus Midheaven highlights the prestige of the presidential office. Venus opposes Saturn, an indication of the challenges therein. But the Moon in Aquarius (co-ruling Hillary) will trine Venus and sextile Saturn from the cusp of the 6th house: Hillary is up for the challenge and will work hard and pursue an independent course to achieve her goals.

An astrologer would probably not have chosen the angular T-square of Venus in the 10th, Saturn in the 4th and Neptune in the 7th house. But Neptune in the 7th rules Hillary’s opponents (“open enemies” astrologically). And while they may blow smokescreens to confuse the issues, they are also not the most effective.

Saturn in the 4th is grounded, but as significator of the “end of the matter,” it may not be propitious. We must look to Hillary’s birth chart to see how the planets are influencing her personally.

The flaws in the announcement horoscope ultimately don’t matter that much. President Obama, for instance, had a void-of-course Moon for his February, 2007 election bid. The more important things to consider are the candidate’s birth chart, the astrological weather at the time of the campaign and election, and transits and progressions to the natal chart. Unfortunately we may not have a definitive birth chart for Hillary Clinton. That’s a topic for another post.

*The NewYorkTimes.com stated that Clinton’s 2-minute video announcement was released “just after 3 p.m.” on April 12, 2015. I used her campaign headquarters in Brooklyn Heights for the location.

A Brooklyn Tragedy

On March 21, 2015, Gayle and Gabriel Sassoon’s home in Brooklyn was destroyed by fire, killing seven of their eight children. Can we anticipate such an extreme event astrologically? And how would it look? Heavy transiting planets often activate the natal chart at momentous times like these.

This was an electrical fire that changed the fate of a large family literally overnight. Must be Uranus, right? But the overwhelming extent of the devastation also suggests Pluto. Of course, the long-term transit of Uranus square Pluto was exact less than two weeks before the fire, strengthening these energies and creating a major upheaval. We are all affected by the Uranus square Pluto trend, but those whose birth charts they contact most closely will feel their effects more strongly. And of course, most of us will not experience such an unusual tragedy, which will be seen in birth chart patterns as well.

Gabriel Sassoon was born on April 28, 1972 according to public records. His full Moon chart with the Sun in Taurus and Moon in Scorpio suggests a life of drama, at least from time to time, as well as complex issues surrounding his home life. The Moon in Scorpio, while in its fall, is nevertheless fruitful when considering children astrologically. With Jupiter trining and sextiling his Sun-Moon opposition, he was also lucky. One certainly can’t consider him lucky in losing most of a large family, but he did survive, being away at a religious retreat at the time of the fire. This combination of luck and tragedy is indicated by his Jupiter in Capricorn, the sign of its fall. There is loss, but something remains. Transiting Neptune also sextiled the Sun trine Jupiter birth chart pattern, providing solace in religion.

Sassoon’s Saturn closely opposes Neptune, showing a need to balance practical reality and ideals. The Sassoons were orthodox Jews, and this resonates with Saturn’s focus on tradition and Neptune’s on ideology. Transiting Saturn at its stationary point strengthened its effects. It closely conjoined Gabriel’s Neptune and opposed his Saturn at the time of the accident, presenting a major change and removing his established security. He was pushed into a new phase as we so often are with Saturn.  Perhaps this combination also shows the negligence in not installing smoke alarms on the family’s main floors.

Gabriel Sassoon also has Uranus opposite Mercury in his birth chart. The transiting Uranus square Pluto pattern exactly squared Uranus. Here is the overwhelming sudden and unexpected event which changed everything forever.

We can see in this example how each of the heavier transiting planets added to the overall event. While no one but a psychic could have foreseen exactly how things would fall out, Uranus and Pluto did forecast a sudden, irrevocable change, and Saturn inevitably moved Sassoon into a new phase of his life. Neptune brought about a confusing event where he lacked the ability to rescue his family. Jupiter allowed him to survive. With a properly timed birth chart, we would know even more. And certainly looking at eclipses, declinations and other astrological tools would fill out this sad story and help us better understand how it happened.