Canada appears to be undergoing its own particular existential and identity crisis with the blame being directed at PM Justin Trudeau. His resignation has been demanded by 24 of his caucus members with today being the deadline for his decision. It seems unlikely he will go instantly though poll numbers are way down with defeat a real possibility in an election expected next year.
When he took up the reins of office in 2015 according to critics he tore ‘the country’s historic identity to shreds. The three prongs of the attack involved setting fire to its past, promoting LGBTQ and critical race theory in schools and government, and unleashing an unprecedented wave of mass migration.’ Even the liberal Globe and Mail, published a piece about the betrayal of the ‘Canadian Dream’. It spoke of a social crisis, an immigration crisis, an economic crisis and a political crisis.
In 2015, transiting Uranus was moving across the Canada Ascendant, hinting at a pull away from the past with a new identity being forged. The tough-minded, persevering Saturn opposition Pluto which is a major prop of the Canada chart had moved by Solar Arc to sit on the Ascendant/Descendant axis and the Canada Neptune as well – so there was immense pressure for a rebranding of the old image. Tr Pluto was also square the Canada Neptune for a moment of confusion and anxiety.
The hope-for-a-better-society-though-not-always-realistic tr Saturn square tr Neptune of 2015 was also bearing down on Canada’s exuberant and go-getting Mars opposition Jupiter.
By 2022 into early 2023 tr Uranus was conjunct the Canada Pluto and opposition the Saturn for another considerable upheaval.
Trudeau was always going to bring sweeping changes – or put another way he was the agent who turned up at a time when changes were going to happen no matter what.
The relationship chart between Trudeau and Canada has a composite Saturn Uranus conjunction which suggests tension with one side wanting freedom and the other yearning for the status quo of stability. Past and future fight a battle which can be explosive. That Uranus Saturn squares the North Node and opposes the Moon and Algol – so it was always going to be a turbulent association with a good deal of ill feeling on the part of the public (Moon).
Justin Trudeau’s personal chart, 25 December 1971 9.27 pm Ottawa, Canada, is a curious mix of compassionate Saturn Neptune sitting alongside ruthlessly determined Mars opposition Pluto square his Capricorn Sun. Kind and cruel at the same time.
He is a thinker and communicator with an Air Grand Trine of Saturn trine Pluto trine Venus, so overly inclined to pursue dogmas and ideas – which he will do with excessive determination given the Pluto opposition Mars on the cusp of his 8th. Though not always sensibly or realistically with his Saturn opposition Neptune.
Saturn conjunct his Midheaven natally will bring retribution for mistakes and any underhand actions – which may be more apparent as tr Uranus enters Gemini by July 2025 onwards. He may be forced into a change of career direction in May 2025 as tr Uranus is conjunct his Midheaven (repeating January to mid March 2026).
Even before then tr Neptune conjunct his Mars next March followed by tr Saturn conjunct his Mars in May 2025 and beyond will bring losses and setbacks. Tr Neptune Saturn in Aries will then proceed to oppose his Pluto and square his Sun through till 2027 for a swampy undermining phase.
His initial Swearing In chart, 4 November 2015 10.45 am does have the Solar Arc exactly conjunct the IC at the moment for a time of disruption and uprooting. With the passionately enthusiastic Venus Mars in Virgo being rattled by the recent Lunar Eclipse and the March and September 2025 eclipses as well. He will most likely come out fighting since an 8th house Mars opposition Pluto is unlikely to go gracefully.
That he was going to bring far-reaching changes was never in doubt with his Pluto opposition Mars square Capricorn Sun opposing the Canada Sun Uranus in Cancer; and his Uranus closely conjunct the Canada Descendant.
The key question is what comes next? Tr Uranus is now moving into the Ca 2nd house of finances so money will be erratic in the coming years though with a chance of innovative ventures paying off. Much internal dialogue and confusion with tr Saturn Neptune moving through the Ca 12th; and a chance to revision the future and the make-up of Canadian society as tr Pluto moves into the 11th this year and on for many years to come.
Marjorie, on this day of October 28th, Justin Trudeau is proving that indeed, he is “unlikely to go gracefully”. So I have urged Liberal MPs to do two things: 1) Use a Canadian precedent for ousting a leader who refuses to go. In 1966, the Progressive Conservatives were led by John Diefenbaker who lost two two elections but refused to resign. There was a grassroots effort in the party, lead by party president Dalton Camp, to hold a leadership review followed by a leadership race in which Diefenbaker had to run for his own job. He lost humiliatingly. 2) Support Mark Carney, former governor of the Bank of Canada, then governor of the Bank of England, as new Liberal leader and prime minister. He is not tainted by this government unlike current cabinet ministers and he is not a chancer (a bored ex-politician) like former premier of B.C. Christy Clark who has expressed some interest in running for Liberal leader. Andre, he also happens to be fluent in French, which is appropriate! Going forward, Canada needs leaders who unite rather than divide citizens of all colours, creeds, ethnicities, ages, income brackets and gender orientations. I hope it won’t take decades to recover from the immense harm done by the worst and least qualified prime minister in Canadian history.
Marjorie, a remarkable astrological analysis. John, thank you for your political analysis.
Astrologically, what is significant in coming years for Canada is the mounting pressure that Pluto in Aquarius will bring in a T-square with the Pluto-Saturn opposition in the 1867 chart. When Pluto was in Scorpio conjunct Saturn, the country almost broke up in 1995.
Politically, Québec clearly dislikes the Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre, who is a FINO (French in name only). Québec is about to vote for the Bloc Québécois, the separatist equivalent of the SNP at Westminster. The collapse of the Liberals and lacklustre standing of the federal New Democrats (NDP) could mean that the Bloc will once again become the Official Opposition in Ottawa, as it did in 1993 and was for the 1995 referendum.
Imagine a Scottish referendum where the SNP was the Official Opposition in Parliament.
A close friend of Justin Trudeau and former right-hand man wrote two weeks ago that Canada doesn’t yet realize that the peril of Québec secession is now greater than ever. In my view, the Trudeaus, father and son, have very significantly contributed to the self-destruction of their country.
For my part, I wrote last year on a part of Justin Trudeau’s legacy which I called a constitutional coup: https://inroadsjournal.ca/archives/22132
Truly incredible article Andre. I lived in Vancouver for a few years in the 90s around the time of HK handover. It is eye popping to see what Justin T has actually planned and executed (or more likely been ushered into place to oversee ). If it is a constitutional coup of this sort can it ever be reversed? Which brings in the next question what happens to property rights if indigenous rights override province/municipal rights? Is everyone in British Properties living on occupied land for instance?
I’m afraid it will be very difficult to reverse because the Supreme Court has gone along with the Liberal vision. The specific legal situation in a province or municipality can vary considerably because of different treaty rights. The NDP government in BC, just reelected, is committed to furthering and deepening this process more than any other province. What is clear is there are now three orders of government even though most people have never heard of it, and indigenous governments will gradually make their presence felt, including in some cases over non-indigenous people who live as in Vancouver on property developments within an indigenous reserve.
Thank you Andre. A remarkable twist in the story of Canada and BC of which i am so fond.
Here is Trudeau’s Age Harmonic chart for 52+ years, in a biwheel with
his natal chart. Pluto in aspect to trans Venus, ruler 10th of career,
suggests changes for himl. Caucus displeasure is also shown.
https://ibb.co/X8NFsp8
Justin Trudeau came into power because Canadians were fed up with the austerity and ideological rigidity of Stephen Harper’s Conservative majority government from 2011 to 2015. From 2006 to 2011, Prime Minister Harper had been forced to make concessions in order for his minority governments to survive, especially after the global financial crisis of late 2008, such as helping to bail out General Motors and in the process, save Canadian jobs in automobile assembly and parts manufacturing. However, once Harper obtained a majority government in 2011, his government was free to attack labour unions, attempt electoral reforms which were really attempts at voter suppression, and impose hiring freezes in the public service that resulted in key positions such as meat inspectors not being replaced. Interest rates were low, but Harper was reluctant to borrow to invest in infrastructure that needed attention. Naturally, Justin Trudeau’s promise of “sunny ways” appealed to Canadians in 2015, and the Liberals were given a majority government by the electorate.
The problem with Trudeau’s new majority government was that it was long on sizzle, but short on steak. Trudeau made a great deal about diversity and brought in a cabinet that featured more women and members of visible minority communities, including an Indigenous Minister of Justice, Jody Wilson-Raybould, with whom Trudeau clashed over the prosecution of officials from SNC-Lavalin for corruption. SNC-Lavalin is a major employer in Quebec whom Trudeau didn’t want to see hit with severe penalties. As a result, Wilson-Raybould was dropped from Cabinet before sitting as an independent Member of Parliament because she stood on her principles. The Minister for the Environment and Climate Change of the day, the blonde and very attractive Catherine McKenna, was caught swanning around Paris with her daughter and a Parisian fashion photographer hired at public expense in tow to document sightseeing during the 2016 Climate Change Accord meetings, thus earning the derisive nickname of “Climate Barbie” from the media and Tories on the opposition benches. In its first term in office and only one with a parliamentary majority, Trudeau’s government earned high marks for effectively fending off the Trump Administration’s trade policy harassment and making few concessions in the new trade pact with the United States and Mexico, but along with the the legalization of cannabis, Trudeau had very little to show to Canadians when the electorate went to the polls in 2019.
Trudeau retained power, but with a minority government dependent upon the support of the social democrat and socialist New Democratic Party led by Jagmeet Singh. When the COVID-19 pandemic occurred, Trudeau used it as an excuse to seek a dissolution of Parliament and a new, unnecessary and expensive election in September 2021 that resulted in another minority government. Trudeau renegotiated another pact with Singh to prop up his government provided legislation such as that creating a national dental plan was passed, but Singh and the New Democrats have since given notice that they would be withdrawing from the pact and treat any vote of confidence on a case by case basis.
In the wake of the 2021 election, an invigorated and aggressive Conservative Party led by a cynical opportunist, Pierre Poilievre, has emerged. Poilievre was one of Harper’s more mediocre but rabidly partisan and servile ministers between 2013 and 2015. Poilievre has known nothing but politics in his adult life, having entered the House of Commons in 2004 at the age of 24. He and a majority of the Tory caucus stabbed the then Leader of the Opposition, Erin O’Toole, in the back over O’Toole’s refusal to explicitly support the Freedom Convoy malcontents that occupied downtown Ottawa and border crossings with the United States at Windsor, Ontario and Coutts, Alberta for nearly a month in the winter of 2022. O’Toole resigned as Tory Leader and Poilievre won the leadership race to succeed him on the first ballot with about 67% of the vote.
Poilievre’s Tories have a massive, double-digit lead in the polls over Trudeau’s Liberals and they have not hesitated to introduce non-confidence motions in Parliament to topple the Trudeau minority government. Singh and the New Democrats are not faring well in the polls either, so to date, Singh has been continuing to prop up Trudeau’s government.
If Trudeau doesn’t resign and give way to a new leader before the next election, many observers believe that Poilievre could be headed for a massive majority government similar in size to the record House of Commons seat wins posted by former Tory Prime Ministers John Diefenbaker and Brian Mulroney in 1958 and 1984 respectively.
oh my goodness, John
Whomever you are, and wherever you are…..
thank-you so much for both of your clear, balanced and insightful 2 comments!!
and Marjorie… thank-you for this one sentence that you included in your post.
“Trudeau was always going to bring sweeping changes – or put another way he was the agent who turned up at a time when changes were going to happen no matter what.”
Given the tension over the most recent British Columbia elections that is still at play this morning, reading this has helped!
@John, thanks so much for your insight. Canadian politics are covered so poorly in US media.
Thanks Marjorie. I think about this a lot and feel kind of shocked about what’s happening with Canada. I grew up in a border city with Canada, so it holds a special place in my heart. Anyway, I recently had conversations with both a guy from Germany and a young woman from South Korea that have both been living in Canada for a few years. They said it was impossible to afford it, especially housing . They also said that the income tax rate is very high in Canada.The young woman said that the Holy Grail supposedly is for foreigners to attain Permanent Residency status in Canada, except that she felt it was worthless, because they overdid it by welcoming too many foreign workers, which is creating a lot of competition for jobs; so it’s difficult to get ahead.. She said the drugs are out of control there, along with homelessness. The German worked construction, which he said was really hard work, because he was unable to find a job and that was what was available. These two were living in Vancouver. In New York, I spoke with a Japanese girl living in Toronto who said that she’s concerned about her personal security there, as apparently Toronto also now is plagued with drugs, etc, something she said you would never see in Japan.
To be fair, Trudeau is responsible for the high number of foreign workers, students and immigrants contributing to a housing crisis in Canada because of his government’s increase in quotas accepted, but real estate in Toronto and Vancouver has always been expensive as a result of foreign speculation since the later 1980’s, when investors from Hong Kong concerned about the eventual transfer of the then British Crown colony to China in 1997 began to show interest. Along with the money from Hong Kong, there have been waves of investment by Chinese money, considerable sums invested until recently by Russians and lately, Arab investors with petrodollars to spend. With the fears of Quebec secession quietened after the “No” side opposed to Quebec independence won the 1995 referendum, Montreal has also experienced a growth in real estate development from foreign money.
Income tax is higher than in the United States, but that pays for a social safety net which includes universal public health care, a good but in no way perfect one. There is a shortage of doctors and nurses, especially in rural areas, as they age and retire. The COVID-19 pandemic scared off many from pursuing or considering a medical career.
Drug use in public has increased since the legalization of cannabis in 2018, and one can smell smoke from cannabis much more frequently on the street, but to say that drugs are out of control or that cities are plagued is a gross exaggeration. Many complaints are of the Not-In-My-Backyard variety, especially because of safe consumption sites for addicts because the clientele loiter about the centres. Some addicts have sold prescribed opioids from treatment centres on the street, resulting in rare but highly publicized incidents of teens dying by overdosing by consuming those prescribed drugs. Many of the homeless are addicts who refuse to abide by regulations in shelters or seek help.
Sorry, John, have to respectfully disagree with your statement that “to say that drugs are out of control or that cities are plagued is a gross exaggeration”. I currently live in Toronto but moved here a few years ago from Vancouver. The drug problem, IMO, in both cities has been out of control since the end of the pandemic. I used to take transit in Vancouver and our bus traveled through the downtown east side to get to the North shore. If it were a Friday (when government-support cheques were released), the bus would have to be escorted through this section of the city by police because otherwise, people would be so high that they’d either be blocking the streets or banging on the side of the bus at red lights, wanting to get on. As much as I desperately feel for those who struggle with addiction, it was very scary and unnerving – something out of a zombie apocalypse. No easy answers
Toronto is only slightly better. I remember last year, when there was a run of murders and violence on the subway, and the police were dispatched to patrol the train cars, that there was a guy who got on the subway and proceeded to light up his crack pipe beside me to get high. That there were cops on the next train-car – he was completely indifferent to them. From where I stand, the conversations that Jody shared of three immigrants are spot-on.
Montreal was safer until recently, but now there is an unheard-of degree of violence as well. Young street gangs are killing each other and fighting with knives next to their school in broad daylight. Within a mile from my home in a quiet neghborhood, there are now more and more murders. Immigration is proportionately higher than in any other country and that is why Trudeau has to go.