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October and Beyond
September brought a strange combination of positive and negative stories for Donald Trump. Under strong Jupiter aspects (square natal Jupiter and quincunx natal Uranus), he fostered successful agreements between Bahrain and the UAE with Israel. He also delighted in the opportunity to choose a third Supreme Court nominee.
Despite these uplifting events for the president, the Saturn station opposite his Venus and the progressed Inaugural Moon conjunct natal Inaugural Saturn signaled the solidifying of his losing poll numbers both nationally and in several battleground states. Moreover, by late month, we learned that he has paid hardly any taxes in the last 15 years while living in the lap of extravagance and luxury. Even worse, he is $421 million dollars in debt, making him ripe for severe exploitation by various malignant foreign actors and putting our national security in peril. It seems likely, given our foreign policy of the past four years, that this process is well under way.
Now that we are in October, there are no ameliorating Jupiter transits to offset the barrage of stress, strain, and difficulty signaled by multiple planetary indicators in Trump’s chart. After months of a cavalier response to the coronavirus and flouting the mask requirements in the White House, at rallies, and at fundraisers, the president and the first lady have contracted the disease. Moreover, while knowing he had been exposed by an infected staff member, Trump went to a fundraiser in Bedminster, potentially endangering several of his wealthy donors. We have yet to hear the fallout from that event or how widespread the infection may go in the White House and Congress given the lack of preventative measures that have been the norm in GOP circles since this nightmare began. We also do not know, as of this time, how serious Trump’s infection will be. But as I have said repeatedly over the years, eventually self-serving delusion will crash hard into the painful wall of reality and a price for avoidance and denial and dishonesty will be paid.
The transit of Saturn opposite Trump’s Venus will continue through October 22, suggesting an emotionally painful time. As of October 1, just as Trump learned he had the virus, his progressed Moon moved into a semisquare with progressed Saturn/progressed MC (3Leo10). This significant intensification of the difficult, emotionally stressful and frustrating progressed MC conjunct progressed Saturn will continue through October 27. Progressed Saturn/progressed MC is also being strengthened by a protracted station of Neptune in a sesquiquadrate aspect from September 25 through December 5. This significantly strengthened Saturn/MC combination suggests increasingly difficult circumstances in the reality-based world (Saturn) forced upon Trump from September 25 through December 5 and shrinking his power and reputation (MC) in the process. The progressed Moon involvement in October may be the specific indicator of his struggle with the virus.
My take on the election itself is as follows:
the Mercury/Saturn square, with Mercury stationary, goes from October 30 through November 5, pointing to delays, confusion, upset, and frustration during the time of the election and just after for a few days;
the Jupiter transit conjunct Pluto, with both quincunx Trump’s Sun from November 7 to November 13 points to Trump’s attempts to create chaos and override the election results in some fashion;
increasingly, from November 12 and beyond, Trump’s attempts to steal the election fail due to transiting Saturn quincunx his Mars from October 22 through November 20, transiting Pluto opposite his Saturn from November 11 through December 23, and transiting Saturn square to his progressed Ascendant from November 12 through November 26. The Mars station through mid-November does, however, suggest some violence and civil unrest.
As for Joe Biden, the key progression for him is the progressed Venus quincunx his natal Pluto (7Leo13) that began in late September 2020 and continues through July 2021. Pluto is the ruler of Biden’s four Scorpio planets and the ultimate dispositor of the whole chart, signifying that aspects to it are especially important. Venus here warms natal Pluto and adds an attractiveness and popularity. This Venus/Pluto aspect is further energized by Biden’s progressed Moon quincunx natal Pluto from October 1 through October 23. This adds an element of emotional intensity and a sense of being scrutinized and criticized as well as an increased personal magnetism. In addition, tertiary progressed Venus will be square to natal Pluto from October 25 to December 1, further adding to the charm, popularity, and energy of the secondary progressed Venus/Pluto aspect. And finally, transiting Uranus will be square to natal Pluto (quincunx progressed Venus) and opposite tertiary Venus from November 10 to December 8, perhaps solidifying the election results and Biden’s sudden change of status at that time.
December brings some serious and painful difficulties to Biden, whether from his or a loved one’s illness or just from the incredibly stressful process of transition during a pandemic with a resistant incumbent who is leaving behind a disastrous mess. Biden’s progressed Moon will be square to natal Saturn (9Gemini57) from December 5 through January 2, while transiting Saturn will be square to his Moon (00Taurus59) from December 18 to 26.
But noteworthy and nonetheless suggestive of a presidential win are the following: tertiary progressed Jupiter will be conjunct Biden’s MC (19Virgo54) from December 20, 2020 through December 2021. In addition, transiting Pluto will oppose Biden’s Jupiter (25Cancer08) during all of January 2021, while transiting Jupiter will oppose his Pluto (January 14 to 20) and transiting Uranus will square his Pluto from January 13 to February 19. Taken altogether, these aspects point to an expansion (Jupiter) of power (Pluto) at this time.
Final Stretch
The Final Stretch
We are coming into the final stretch before the 2020 election and hopefully the final months of Trump’s reign of malfeasance and malevolence perpetrated upon America. There are multiple planetary configurations coming together that suggest a continuation of turmoil, civil unrest, and a failing and flailing Trump administration. I will try to describe this cacophony of disparate indicators and how they will weave together going forward.
Trump: The pressure from the protracted Saturn station opposite Trump’s Venus (25Cancer45) from August 18 to October 22 is bringing such a barrage of criticism and disparagement that the painfully thin-skinned Trump is barely holding it together emotionally. When the protective benefit of transiting Jupiter square to his natal Jupiter (17Libra27) begins to separate after September 19, the downward pressure on Trump’s poll numbers will only increase.
Beginning in late November 2019 and continuing through January 20, 2021, Trump has been dealing with increasingly stressful and demanding circumstances – impeachment, the pandemic, civil unrest, the election – all of which should have been handled with caution, care, responsibility and humility (Saturn when operating in appropriately), but all oxymoronic concepts when discussing Deranged Donnie, the Chaos King. This is indicated by Trump’s progressed MC conjunct his progressed Saturn (3Leo10). This extremely challenging configuration will be intensified by his progressed Moon semisquare progressed Saturn during the entire month of October. It will also be triggered by transiting Neptune from September 25 to December 6, suggesting that October and November into early December will bring overwhelming and challenging situations that he is ill equipped to handle. This trend is further exacerbated by the transit of Saturn quincunx Trump’s Mars (26Leo47) from October 22 through November 20 and the return of Pluto opposite Trump’s Saturn (23Cancer49) from November 4 to December 23, suggesting feelings of fear, frustration, and failure.
I continue to feel concern for the period from November 7 to November 13 when Uranus, Jupiter, and Pluto are all in aspect to Trump’s Sun (22Gemini56), suggesting he will stretch to the utmost limits his megalomaniacal attempts to exert pressure and manipulation on events to get them to confirm to his own will. I do not think this will ultimately be successful, but it is concerning.
Inaugural chart: The 2017 Inaugural chart is the chart of the Trump administration. The inherent tension described in this chart by the tight Mars/Saturn/Moon configuration describes a restive and angry population, problematic and controversial policies, and a constant push-pull between aggression and being forcibly opposed. These traits are now in the process of being unleashed and intensified by both the transit of Uranus and the movement of the progressed Inaugural Moon.
As of September 1, the progressed Inaugural Moon has moved into orb of a conjunction with natal Saturn (23Sagittarius30) through October 1, and then will extend to October 15 with the progressed Moon conjunct progressed Saturn. An almost identical progressed Moon conjunction with Inaugural Saturn happened in the second Inaugural chart of George w. Bush when the economy collapsed in September 2008. This aspect describes failure and a very upset and suffering population. The recent article about Trump’s attitude toward our military and his calling our military war dead “losers” and “suckers”, coming during the onset of this progression, suggests that this story may well reverberate through the heart of the nation and sound the death knell for this administration. The continuing exacerbation of the pandemic and the festering racial injustice issues only add to this picture.
With the simultaneous transit of Uranus opposite Inaugural Moon (9Scorpio22) and semisquare Inaugural Mars (September 13 to October 19), we can expect a great deal of protest and civil unrest, with a violent response from the administration. This is underlined by the Inaugural progressed Moon square to natal Mars (24Pisces21) during the entire month of October.
US chart: And finally, the most noteworthy pattern in the US chart is the heightening of feelings of distrust, paranoia, conspiracy theories, and intense partisan power struggles. This has been especially strong since late July with the progressed US Moon conjunct natal Pluto (27Capricorn33) through late August, followed by the transiting station of Mars square to US Pluto from August 26 through September 19, and finally progressed US Moon conjunct progressed Pluto from September 14 through October 14. These indicators correspond with the civil unrest and power struggles suggested in the Inaugural chart described above.
There are indications of real change by the time we enter 2021. The progressed US Moon will move into Aquarius by November, freeing us from the Moon’s more brittle and restrictive crossing through Capricorn and into the more egalitarian Aquarius. Saturn will also leave Capricorn on December 18, after two and half years in hard aspect to six planets in the US chart, all of which have caused severe tension and contraction in many areas of the US culture, economy, and body politic. And finally, Pluto will finally be past its opposition to US Mercury after December, one of the more obvious indicators of the pandemic and the prevalence of conspiracy theories for the entire year. So let us all hope for a full reprieve from the insanity and horror of 2020, a year that will surely live in infamy. And let us all hope for a renewal and strengthening of the soul of the nation going forward, led by someone who actually has our best interests at heart.
Summer into Fall
There is another pandemic running rampant throughout the land. It underlies the stark and painful reality of the coronavirus, and it is the reason we have failed so abysmally in tackling the great challenge of Covid-19. This deeper sickness is the selfishness and self-serving dishonesty that lets people rationalize their irresponsible behavior, their racism, and their unwillingness to stand up to Mad King Donnie. The motto of the spiritually infected is: ”As long as it is good for me, I don’t care who else it hurts.”
Whether it is Trump who doesn’t want to admit to the reality of the coronavirus because it might make him look bad, Republicans who fear losing the support of their lunatic cult-like base, idiots who don’t want their “freedom” impinged by wearing a mask, or the super wealthy corporatists who don’t care about the pollution they are spewing or the environmental disaster they are fomenting, this blatantly selfish disregard for the greater good is what will ultimately sink this country if we don’t wake up and fight the sickness of the American soul. As the great Ben Franklin once said: “Experience keeps an expensive school, but fools will learn in no other.”
As is obvious from any metric one might choose, astrology also suggests that the final months of 2020 will continue to be extremely distressing. The birth chart for the year, drawn for midnight on January 1, suggests that the strain of the Saturn/Pluto conjunction waxes throughout the entire year. The power struggle to survive and the fearfulness surrounding that struggle are indicated by this conjunction which describes the larger context of the year. The year began with the impeachment inquiry and then immediately moved into the ever-burgeoning reality of the metastasizing coronavirus and its emotional and economic devastation throughout the country.
Now that we are in high summer, the US is currently in the midst of its progressed Moon conjunct natal Pluto (27Capricorn33) from July 23 through August 23. This already difficult configuration has been made worse by the transit of Saturn conjunct the US progressed Moon from August 1 to August 12. This combination brings with it enormous emotional stress and fear among the population and can be seen manifesting by not only the continuing pandemic but by the Congress and White House’s inability to find a way to continue aid to tens of millions of Americans. The eviction moratorium is gone, as are the unemployment benefits and paycheck protection act. People are terrified and are hurting. There is likely to be some relief after August 12 as Saturn separates from the progressed Moon, but the strain of progressed Moon/natal Pluto will wax through August 23, likely suggesting worsening news about the virus. Perhaps Congress will manage something more substantial thereafter.
In addition, the coming Jupiter transit in Trump’s chart is of particular concern. Jupiter will be stationary quincunx Trump’s Uranus (17Gemini54) from August 14 through September 30, and Jupiter will be stationary square to natal Jupiter (17Libra27) from August 19 to September 19. This suggests a period of recklessness and unilateral action by our sociopathic megalomaniacal president, during which he is unlikely to be contained by anyone. Trump’s recent association with Jon Yoo, of torture memo fame, enabled Deranged Donnie to rationalize a Supreme Court loss over DACA into a win, as he moves to further sabotage the program. The potential of unrestrained, unilateral action, rationalized by feeble legal theories of those such as John Yoo and William Barr, but in actuality based only in Trump’s grandiose delusions, will be enormous during this Jupiter transit (8/14 to 9/30).
The good news, for those of us who hope desperately to be rid of this dreadful Trumpian stain on the American psyche, is the coming Saturn station opposite Trump’s Venus (25Cancer44) from August 18 through October 22, compounded in October and then extended through December by the transit of Pluto opposite natal Saturn (23Cancer49) from October 4 to December 23. The Saturn transit opposite Venus, in particular, suggests a loss of allies, plummeting polls, and significant melancholy and isolation.
As for the election itself, the high number of absentee ballots will clearly be delaying the results. With the Mercury station square to a slow-moving Saturn for the first week of November, we can expect delays, controversies, recounts and significant troubles. Moreover, with Trump under a Jupiter/Pluto conjunction quincunx his Sun (22Gemini56) from November 7 to November 13, we can expect some super-charged manipulations and recklessness from our self-serving White House Resident. It may be around the 13th of November or so when the tide shifts away from such chicanery and the results finally are clarified.
One final point I would like to cover is the incredible agitation and stress for the administration suggested in the Inaugural chart for September and October. September will bring an overwhelming feeling of failure and a collapse of current policies (Inaugural progressed Moon conjunct Saturn, 23Sagittarius30)). This will continue through mid-October with progressed Inaugural Moon conjunct progressed Saturn. This situation will be met with enormous public protest and anger as well as an aggressive and likely violent response from the Trump administration (transiting Uranus opposite Inaugural Moon and semisquare Inaugural Mars, September 13 to October 17; and progressed Inaugural Moon square Inaugural Mars, 24Pisces21, October 1 to October 28; and don’t forget the Jupiter transit to Trump’s chart mentioned above which suggests unilateral action). With the transiting Mars station in late September and early October spending time square to Saturn (September 27 to September 30) and square to Pluto (October 4 to October 9), we can expect a very tumultuous two months prior to the election.
Clearly, 2020 will be a year that goes down in infamy. Trump’s selfishness and grandiose delusions have crashed upon the harsh shores of reality. Let us hope that in 2021 we can begin to address the shipwreck we have been left with and do so with an attitude more befitting a great nation, since we will all need to pitch in to get things back on track.
Trump’s Agenda is not America’s Agenda
In light of all the controversy and confusion around President Trump essentially ignoring the intelligence concluding that Russia has been paying bounties to the Taliban for the murder of American soldiers in Afghanistan, we really should not be surprised. Since the beginning of this presidency, it has become increasingly apparent that Trump’s agenda is not the same as what we would customarily expect from a president.
In normal times, our leader strives to promote the safety, security, and health of the population, making his choices in a way that will serve the public interest, albeit based on his political perspective. Under Trump, the presidency has devolved into a means to promote his personal interests. It is a means to have adoring crowds feed his insatiable narcissistic needs, even if those crowds will become a superspreader event for a dangerous pandemic. It is also a means to feast on the rush of dominance over those who disagree with him, oppose him, or speak a truth that counters his grandiose delusions. Thus, reputations are crushed, people are fired, tweets are pushed that impact the Stock Market, tariffs are imposed, soldiers are rearranged, never with a consideration of the consequences to the national interest, but instead in a fit of pique or as a heady rush of incontestable aggressive power.
But we should not forget the other agenda item of the Trump presidency that underlies a great deal of his otherwise unexplainable statements, policies, and pretended ignorance. Trump came into office wanting to end the sanctions on Russia. That is what the whole Flynn case was ultimately about. He and his minions lied repeatedly about their associations with Russia and worked assiduously to diminish and ultimately dismantle the work of the Mueller investigation. Trump precipitously pulled our troops out of Syria, essentially benefiting the Turkish and the Russian policy aims and abandoning our allies, the Kurds. He withheld financial and military aid to the Ukrainians, attempting to benefit himself politically but also weakening the Ukrainians in their war against Russia.
Moreover, Trump has pushed hard to get the Russians back into the G7 to make it once again a G8. He has deferred to Putin on matters of intelligence and ignored the US intelligence community findings on a number of occasions. And now we learn that the Putin government has been paying bounties to the Taliban to kill American soldiers, and Trump has not responded in any way to this egregious Russian scheme. What is incontrovertible is that all of these policy decisions are linked by a willingness to protect and promote the Putin agenda at the expense of US national security, American allies, the sanctity of the US election system, and now even the safety of American troops.
Given that Trump has literally worked miracles to keep his taxes and financial statements from public knowledge, and he has recently fired the US Attorney from the Southern District of New York who was sniffing around Trump’s finances, attempting to install a former lawyer for Deutche Bank in the process, we must strongly consider that it is the hidden truths underpinning Trump’s financial interests that are the key to his total submissiveness to Putin, the leader of an adversary nation.
Indeed, it seems more than likely that Putin is the ultimate puppeteer in the history of Trump’s money-laundering of Russian money through Trump’s real estate deals. Putin is the man behind the curtain in how Trump got loans, underwritten by a Russian-owned bank and filtered through a European bank, when no one else wanted to lend him anything. And more to the point, Putin is likely the key to Trump’s future financial security once he is out of office.
If we understand that the president’s agenda is not the agenda of the country, but often serves interests that often run counter to our national security, our health and our general welfare, then we can connect the dots between everything that otherwise makes no sense at all.