Astrology, Prediction and Comment

Donald Trump is about to turn 74 – his last birthday as President of the United States.  Presumably he’ll be defeated in November, although there is always a possibility that for some reason he won’t run.  I’ve already discussed the fact that his presidency is drawing to a close, so I won’t go over the details again.  We can nonetheless get an idea about what’s going on by looking at his solar return chart, for the moment the Sun returns to where it was when he was born.

There are different ways of calculating the solar return, but I use a tropical return set for the place of birth rather than the current location.  Here is Donald’s natal chart:

And here’s the solar return, which takes place the day before his calendar birthday, on June 13th:

The solar return suggests that COVID-19 hasn’t gone away.  Jupiter, ruler of the Sixth House of sickness, is on the Seventh House cusp, conjunct Pluto.  Donald doesn’t want to think about COVID-19, but it creeps back.  We get further evidence from the chart’s exact Mars-Neptune conjunction, which is square the Sun.  Mars is ruler of the Aries Midheaven, and we get a feeling of frustration and misplaced energy.

There are other issues to consider:

• The degree of the solar return’s ascendant is on Donald’s natal Venus.
• The solar return’s Jupiter is opposition his natal Venus.
• The solar return has Moon in the Ninth House sexile Jupiter in the Seventh.

There are probably ways to divert the nation’s attention from corona and mayhem, for example he could get involved in an overseas conflict, or dump Mike Pence and choose a female running mate.  But none of this changes the fact that if he stands in November he’ll lose.

Derek Chauvin was the Minnesota police office who was charged with the third degree murder of George Floyd.  It was a death that happened in full view of the world.  The police had been called after George Floyd had been accused of making a purchase with a forged $20 note.  George Floyd was apprehended and handcuffed, and shortly afterwards he died.  It would seem from the video evidence that the cause of death was Chauvin kneeling on his throat, for a period of eight minutes or more.  This was in spite of the fact that bystanders were trying to intervene, and George Floyd was complaining that he couldn’t breathe.

Derek Chauvin’s behaviour was extraordinary by all accounts, and many people must be thinking what kind of person he is.  Well, we do know that while working for the Minneapolis Police Department numerous complaints had been filed against him.  So he probably wasn’t an exemplary police officer.  Another thing we know is that he was born on March 19 1976.  At least that’s what the complaint sheet says.  The complaint sheet doesn’t say where he was born, or what time he was born, so we’ll assume a midday birth in Minneapolis.  If he was born somewhere completely different it won’t make much difference.  Here’s his horoscope:

What stands out about the chart is that it has six of the seven traditional planets in Water signs: the Sun, Mercury and Venus in Pisces, Mars and Saturn in Cancer and the Moon in Scorpio.  When you have so much water you often have someone who is very subjective, who believe totally that they are in the right.  It is not a matter of the intellect, it is about the emotions.  And there is anger and stubborness when their view of the world is challenged.

You also have the image of immersion.  Chauvin may have immersed himself in the organizational culture of the Minneapolis Police Department.  He has understood it in a particular way, and it justified everything he did.  This may link specifically with his Pisces Sun – and he really is a Pisces, whatever time of day he was born.  Pisceans, more so than other sign, can immerse themselves in a view of world, to the extent where human rights and normal decency get thrown out of the window.  Robert Mugabe was a Pisces, as was Osama bin Laden.  And so were some of the worst Nazis: Josef Mengele (March 16), Adolf Eichmann (March 19) and Reinhard Heydrich (March 7).  That’s right, Derek Chauvin and Adolf Eichmann have the same birthday.  And today, May 31 2020, is the 58th anniversary of Eichmann’s execution.

If you’re into fixed stars, you’ll be interested to know that Chauvin’s Sun is exactly conjunct Scheat.  It is one of the worst stars in the book, at it is associated with shipwrecks and disasters.  According to Vivian Robson, Scheat “causes extreme misfortune, murder, suicide, and drowning”.

Another thing to notice is that Chauvin’s Sun is making a square to Mars.  This creates the potential for violence, and unusually, it is a Watery square, with the Sun in Pisces and Mars in Cancer.

This brings us to the Aries Point and its aspects.  These points are zero degrees of the cardinal signs and 15 degrees of the fixed signs.  The Aries point is about what you create in the world around you.  With his Mars square the Aries point, he has created violence and turmoil.  From a midpoint perspective, he has Aries on the Sun/Mars midpoint.  Witte and Lefeldt described this midpoint as “To be active in public”.  This is a horrible euphemism for the publicity of his actions and their consequences.

Finally, if you are into Witte’s hypothetical planets, Chauvin also has the Aries Point, as well as the Sun and Mars, on the Uranus-Hades midpoint.  We get the image of chaos, eruptions and death – the very events that followed George Floyd’s killing.  Witte and Lefeldt wrote of this midpoint “Unexpected events are taking a toll of life. Sudden murder”.

For the last few weeks I have been too rational to think about astrology.  I was spending a lot of time tutoring psychology and statistics, and astrology didn’t seem relevant.  That’s the problem about being in two places at the same time.  It works, it doesn’t work, I believe it, I’m deluding myself.  Of course the reality is, that astrology works.  It works because it has to work, and if it doesn’t work we’re all doomed.  And of course we’re doomed anyway.

But if you’re interested, here are the month’s main events:

Ongoing: Saturn retrograde in Aquarius, Jupiter retrograde in Capricorn, separating Jupiter-Saturn conjunction.

June 3: Venus-Mars square.

June 5: Full Moon eclipse at 16 Sagittarius.

June 17: Mars semisquare Uranus.

June 18: Mercury goes retrograde.

June 20: Summer Solstice.

June 21: New Moon eclipse at 0 Cancer.

June 23: Neptune goes retrograde.

June 25: Venus goes direct.

June 28: Mars enters Aries.

June 30: Jupiter conjunct Pluto.

Overall, I would have said that it was a busy month, and over the next few weeks I’ll be discussing the events in detail.  One thing we might observe is a break-up of the Jupiter-Saturn conjunction.  The two planets are now moving further apart, and in some parts of the world there might be a feeling that we are returning to normal.  I know, a pretty obvious statement, given the fact that the lockdowns are coming to an end.

However, don’t be fooled.  The world has changed for ever.  Jupiter and Saturn will come back into aspect, and they will be conjunct at the end of December.  The ways of living and particularly working that have developed over the last few months are not going away.  And don’t for a moment believe that the world is going to magically recover.

At the beginning of June the planet Venus is in a terrible position.  It is retrograde, square Mars, and conjunct the Sun.  This means that activities of a Venusian nature should be avoided: new relationships, cosmetic surgery and buying supposedly beautiful objects.  What seems beautiful now may be a monstrosity in the light of day.  It goes without saying that tattoos and other forms of self-mutiliation should be given a wide berth.

The Full Moon on June 5 may have some impact on the US.  This is because the most widely used horoscope for the US has Sagittarius rising, and the Sagittarius Full Moon may bring things out into the open, in a fairly destructive way.  However, there a Sagittarius Full Moon every year, so it may not be such a big deal.

As we move into the middle of the month, the pressure starts to mount.  June 17 sees an explosive semi-square between Mars and Uranus, so avoid doing anything dangerous around this date.  Then we have Mercury going direct, swiftly followed by the Summer Solistic and a New Moon eclipse.  In fact, the Solstice pretty much happens on this eclipse. The chart of of the Solistice heads this article – it is set for 10.44 pm British Summer Time, in Westminster.  It is a new beginning, but in a tough way – there will be no room for compromise.  This is especially the case in the UK, where the Solstice chart sees a conjunction between Jupiter and Pluto, on the Ascendant.

There is something more disturbing about the chart.  The Sun, and therefore the Aries Point, are exactly 45 degrees from the Neptune-Hades midpoint, at 15 degrees Taurus:

The Neptune-Hades combination is about death and infectious disease, and this is strongly suggestive of a second wave of the coronavirus.  This is not specific to any location.  Witte and Lefeldt, in Rules for Planetary Pictures, associated AR = NE/HA with floods and tidal waves, and they described SU = NE/HA as “Weakening, danger of infection. Danger of destruction of the body. Danger in water. Death by drowning. Sea voyages”. Put another way, if you’re stupid enough to go on a summer holiday, avoid lakes, rivers, seas, oceans and swimming pools.

“The Jupiter-Pluto conjunction on June 30 represents the principle of self-improvement, at any cost.  And perhaps we can apply this to ourselves.  If our lives aren’t good enough, if we’re wasting our talents, all of us get another chance to get the show back on the road.  It doesn’t matter how old we are, or how difficult the task.  We can do it.

I am calling the November presidential election for the Democrats, on the assumption that Donald Trump is on the ticket on November 3.  Before anyone accuses me of making an obvious prediction, the current consensus is that Trump’s chances of winning are 50%.  If you’re a liberal you probably think that Trump is definitely going to lose, but that’s what you said in 2016.

In terms of my own prejudices, I am not an American citizen, but I live in the US.  I take the view that in terms of foreign policy there is an argument for supporting Trump over his Democrat opponents.  It was the Democrats and Hillary Clinton who further wrecked the Middle East, with their over-optimistic assessment of the Arab Spring.  Also, the Democrats’ attempts to interfere in the Ukraine were counterproductive. I believe that if we want a safe world, we need to respect Russia’s legitimate security needs.

Yet from an ethical perspective it is difficult to support Trump.  He is an environmental nightmare, and he seems to relish the anger that his environment-destroying policies cause.

Indeed, from a clinical perspective, his polices have a touch of oppositional defiant disorder (ODD).  The American Psychiatric Association’s Diagnostic and Statisical Manual, Fifth Edition, has some guideliness on the diagnosis of ODD.  It gives eight categories, of which four have to be matched (p.462).  For example:

Often actively defies or refuses to comply with requests from authority figures or with rules.

Often deliberately annoys others.

Often blames others others for his or her mistakes or misbehavior.

Has been spiteful or vindictive at least twice within the past 6 months.

Trump is also doing his best to dismantle Obamacare.  While the Affordable Care Act might not be perfect, and it would be preferable if there was a single payer system, it is better than nothing.  So on balance I hope that Trump loses in November.

This is the subjectivity I bring to the question.  I then have to ask the question:

“Will Donald Trump get re-elected to the White House in November?”

I asked the question on May 6 2020, at 4:40 pm, in Lakewood, Washington State. Here’s the chart, using Regiomontanus cusps:

When looking at this kind of horary, one first looks at the querent.  That’s me, the astrologer.  Libra is rising, and I am therefore represented by Venus in Gemini in the Ninth House, in mutual reception to Mercury in Taurus.  I am the foreigner, and I am also strongly placed.  Furthermore, I am in the same sign as the North Node.  So I am not going to be hurt by the question, and my reputation is not going to suffer.

Then we have Donald Trump.  He is President of the United States, which means that he is ruler of the Tenth House.  Cancer is on the Tenth House cusp, so the primary ruler is the Moon in Scorpio in the Second House.  We might ,also consider Jupiter in Capricorn in the Fourth, because Jupiter is exalted in Cancer.  Trump’s opponents are represent by the ruler of the Fourth, which is Saturn in Aquarius.

The Moon is in a terrible position.  It is in Scorpio, the sign of its fall, and it is moving towards an opposition with the Sun – in other words, the question was asked just before a Full Moon.  Furthermore, the Moon is in the Via Combusta.  This is the flaming path, between 15 Libra and 15 Scorpio.  When the Moon is in the Via Combusta, things don’t go to plan, and there can be shocking events that change everything.  So something is likely to happen in the election campaign that no-one is expecting.

It is also important that the Moon is in the Second House.  This is the house of a nation’s finances, and relates to the US economy.  This is Trump’s concern.  Yet the Moon is moving to an opposition of the Sun in the Eighth House – this is the house of death, of national mortality and death statistics.  The Moon is at 10 25 Scorpio and the Sun is at 16 53 Taurus – in other words there is a six and a half degree separation between the two.  If one degree is one month, that takes us through to late November.  I know the election, on November 3, is just under six months away, timed from May 6, but it’s good enough.

So on the basis of Trump being the Moon, the picture doesn’t look good.  We could also take Trump as being Jupiter in Capricorn.  This makes sense, because traditionally Jupiter is the planet associated with the Republicans, while Saturn is associated with the Democrats.  Jupiter is fallen in Capricorn, and is in a sign ruled by Saturn.  And if we take the Tenth House as Trump, and the Fourth House as his opponents, then Jupiter in the Fourth means that Trump is “owned” by his enemies.

There are a few problems with the chart.  The Moon in the Via Combusta can mess with the result, though by the time it makes the opposition with the Sun it has moved out of this region.  Also, the planetary hour is the Moon, which does not accord with the Libra ascendant.  However, it is a minor stricture against judgement, and I predict that on the evening of January 20 2021, Donald Trump won’t be US President.  I am NOT making an predictions about who will be inaugurated in his place, because I didn’t ask about anyone else.