Trump’s grandstanding ‘liberation day’ as he launched a trade war with tariffs for all the world like a gameshow host has fulfilled one of his aims, namely drawing the attention of the world to him.
He timed his bombshell announcement unwittingly with astrological precision at 4pm Washington, DC time. The destructive Fixed Star Algol was exactly conjunct the Midheaven; and the shipwreck Scheat plus unrealistic Neptune were on the cusp of the financial 8th. There was a confident Moon Jupiter in the 10th. With an exact mini Grand Trine of Mars in Cancer in the 11th trine Saturn in the friends-and-enemies 7th, sextile Uranus in the international 9th.
He also has tr Uranus on his personal birth chart conjunct his Midheaven exactly, suggesting his birth time of 10.54 am may well be accurate. Which would mean that tr Neptune Scheat are also moving into his 8th – an ominous sign for his financial acuity and progress ahead.
Scott Bessent, 21 August 1962, Treasury Secretary, is having a panicky-failure year ahead with tr Neptune square his Mars running till late January 2026; with jolts and jangles from this July onwards.
Peter Navarro, 15 July 1949, described as Trump’s ‘tariff czar’, is equally nervy from early this June with tr Neptune square his Uranus, extending through and worsening in 2026 when he also picks up a financial-bubble-bursting Solar Arc Jupiter opposition his Neptune and a high tension tr Urus square his Saturn.
Instant success will not be on the cards.
Since economics is not my area, some snippets below from informed economic journalists, all of whom are clear that no one really knows what the effects will be.
“It is hard not to feel, yet again, that part of what drove Trump’s decision was the sheer thrill he gets from his power. He glories in the way the world hangs on his every move, as the world must when its largest economy is controlled by a grudge-bearing man-child with guns who governs by decree.”
“Perilous and chaotic, Trump’s tariffs add up to an attempt to transform a badly broken economic model.”
“Trump’s announcement was awash with insult and rambling nonsense.”
“Things may not look so benign, however, when the rubber hits the road — when the inevitable price hikes are passed on to consumers, when inflation and the cost of mortgages begin to rise, when real wages remain flat, or when investment stalls and the US economy starts to experience a Trump slump.”
“It will be months, if not years, before many US companies or sectors have the confidence and the cash to invest in the way “fortress America” supporters hope.”
“Trump thinks tariffs have a magical ability to transform the US economy but they are more likely to boost inflation, inhibit investment and undermine growth.”
“Tariffs alone are not going to rebalance the entire world economy.”
“A central trade-off not just with tariffs but with any solution to the problem of gargantuan trade and currency distortions: someone, somewhere has to pay. If Trump lets the dollar appreciate, then American consumers don’t have to bear the cost. But then American factories won’t recover either.”
“A crucial question is whether Trump will be able to sustain these aggressive trade policies for an extended period or will eventually reverse them under the weight of economic, market, political and even legal pressure.”
“The instant effect of “liberation day” will be confusion and uncertainty, which for Trump is often intentional. The more chaos there is, the greater his sense of being in control. It is also rash to assume that voters will be immune to economic disinformation. Social media has taken the art of scapegoating to near scientific heights.”
“Irrespective of whether Trump’s trade war chaos is fleeting or gets worse, the diplomatic cost will be enduring. Countries will look to do the serious deals with each other and bypass America. In that sense Trump’s transactionalism is self-defeating. Falling trust means fewer deals.”
Add On: Howard Lutnick, the billionaire commerce secretary, 14 July 19561 New York, has been aggressively defending the tariffs, insisting there would be no postponement and said Trump intended to “reset global trade”.
He’s a Sun Cancer opposition Saturn in Capricorn with an ultra-determined and ruthless Mars Pluto in Virgo. He’ll be pushing ahead with sublime confidence till late 2026 with tr Pluto conjunct his Jupiter. But his Solar Arc Pluto conjunct his Neptune also in 2026 will take the wind out of his sails in the midst of devastating confusion. Tr Neptune Saturn in Aries will also square his Mercury in early Cancer from this July through 2026 as well for muddles and evasions. 2027 will start a two or three years run of calamities as tr Uranus squares his Pluto Mars conjunction.
His relationship with Trump will start to slide within weeks as tr Neptune squares their composite Venus, worsening considerably in 2026 and on.
ADD ON April 9: The tariffs went into force at 12.01 am this morning 9th April. The Midheaven was at zero degrees Libra exactly opposition unrealistic Neptune. There was an out of element Grand Trine of Pluto trine MC trine Uranus and the destructive Fixed Star Algol, formed into a Kite by Pluto opposition Mars in Cancer in the 8th exactly conjunct Procyon – making Mars and Procyon the driving forces.
‘Procyon gives activity, violence, sudden and violent malevolence, sudden preferment by exertion, elevation ending in disaster and makes its natives petulant, saucy, giddy, weak-natured, timid, unfortunate, proud, easily angered, careless and violent. There will be sudden fame, sudden violence, a rise followed by a fall; this star gives its natives pride, makes them fortunate and unfortunate.’
The Sun conjunct Chiron is opposition BML. The North Node conjunct Venus, Saturn, Mercury and Neptune are conjunct Scheat. ‘This star imparts to its natives’ stubbornness, one who can be headstrong of a combative nature. The native gains and loses friends and acquaintances, may be unfortunate, of a changeable, almost unpredictable nature, has high enterprise, and may be subject to violence. May become of a controversial nature. Fantasizes.’
The Moon is unsuspected in Virgo in the international 9th house hinting at emotional disorganization.
Wow, the fixed stars are certainly in action.
Thanks for the update Marjorie. Procyon is one of the “big 15” and should certainly be taken seriously. One of Orion’s hunting dogs, the “lesser dog”, literally the one who rises before sirius. What I’ve noted about this star is that it is like a “red flag”, the small terrier at the boundary that picks up sounds, smells of what’s to come on a spectrum that we cannot yet perceive. Also that sort of theme of being, in the words of the great philosopher Stormzy, “way too big for your boots” – as the launch of the Titanic during Neptune/Procyon showed – multiple ice warnings received and ignored, and those loyal, expert voices – the chief designer Thomas Andrews warning about lifeboats being ignored.
Procyon warns to take counsel from smaller, expert voices closer to the realities than you. I would be listening to leaders (Mars) from smaller countries that have proved to be loyal over time. Like when Pluto was transiting Procyon in the mid 1930’s, people like Winston Churchill repeatedly warning parliament (and probably wider) that Hitler was rearming Germany in violation of the Versailles Treaty. Let’s not even get into the silencing of experts during the pandemic when Pluto opposed Procyon.
Listen to the dog that is barking, you don’t know better.
As the chaos and uncertainty continues, and things with China heat up, I looked back at Marjorie’s post in February. Although understandably short on immediate comfort (surprise!), it is very interesting to read this as we approach late April:
“On the 2025 Inauguration chart, the start of Trump Term 11, April 25 to May 2 this year look mired in confusion and explosive with two different sets of influences running. The first is tr Saturn conjunct the Neptune which could be a minor blip of uncertainty except that the Inauguration chart has the Uranus/Pluto and Sun/Uranus midpoints exactly conjunct the Neptune catching the same tr Saturn conjunction. That adds up to stubbornness, hatred, under great pressure, separation through force majeure as well as blocked action, unexpected events involving water or flying.”
Plus, tr Uranus is joining with fixed star Algol/Medusa once again exactly – aspecting late degree fixed signs in various relevant charts both mundane and personal. It’s only a degree off now, so I think that brings in the unstable, upsetting energy surge before the end of this month.
Perhaps it’s worth remembering that these influences would be playing out one way or another anyway. The current cast of actors on the world stage are maybe approaching the end of their run.
It seems to me that there might be a lot of basic maths ignorance in the media: BBC says that Trump put a 20% tariff in March on Chinese goods.
He then added another 34% last week.
Now he says he will put an additional 50% if China doesn’t scrap its 34% on American goods.
Yes, 20 + 34 + 50 = 104, but I does it go that way?
First, x is the price of a good.
Then you have
x + 0.2 × x.
If the price of that goes up, you will have a new base for calculation.
So
x + 0.2 × x + 0.34 × (x + 0.2 x) = 1.608 × x.
Then if the price goes up again by 50 %, you will have
1.608 × x + 0.5 × 1.608 × x = 2.412 × x.
Suddenly, the good is 241.2 % more expensive than it was when we started.
But maybe Trump really just increases the tariff simply, and then the maths is different.
China wants its citizens to stop buying American goods anyway – so this was a handy way to make that happen.
Goldman Sachs predicts that a 100% tariff on Chinese goods could reduce China’s growth by 2.4 percentage points. As China was predicting around 5% growth ( unverifiable and sharply down on prior decade) this means average chinese will have not much money to buy anything. there is currently a gap of nearly 20 percentage points between China’s consumption-to-GDP ratio and the global average level
However in the bigger scheme of bond market breakdowns globally things are infinitely more serious.
It fascinates me that America which has just been completing its Pluto Return in late Capricorn; didn’t have its Pluto opposition Pluto until the 1930s – 160yrs after the country was born. To this point, America was essentially not interested in getting involved with world events outside of Central and South America. Then over the past 80-90yrs it’s been involving itself in everything. Now as the Pluto Return completes and back in the original phase America seems to be heading back towards isolationism.
Some while back I read that the Saturn-Uranus conjunction which will take place in 2031 is the point where economies move from globalisation which started with the conjunction in Sag circa 1987 back to localisation.
Gemini is the sign of neighbours and the locality so perhaps it’s no surprise that Trump with his Gemini planets; plus an family-oriented Saturn-Venus in Cancer would take this course of action which he believes will bring jobs back to America.
There’s a certain irony inherent in this situation that America’s competitive ethos which caused one company after one ship their manufacturing abroad to cheaper locations and now Trump is blaming hose other countries for taking American jobs. In some ways that feels like the cycle of the zodiac as it begins, grows, reaches peak and then falls back to nothing for rebirth.
True, trade deficits may ship some jobs out. But – tax havens ship profits out, and he’s not touching them as far as I can see. It’s almost like he is presenting the wrong inequality as a diversion. Neptune passing the Aries point has thrown up this fake reset, which will not benefit the people at all.
Marjorie, 2018, September 25 Trump spoke to the U.N. General Assembly and a great number in attendance (world leaders) laughed at him when he tried to brag about his accomplishments.
How do the dates for that event & “Liberation Day” (sic—lol, sick!) connect?
Sunday morning talk shows (that I obviously don’t follow, but get a great recap through Aaron Rupar and Acyn Torabi accounts) confirmed my point of there not being a coherent plan behind any of this. Trump people invited to separate shows managed to contradict each other on whether the tariffs are negotiable. The Wall Street consensus last week seemed to be that *maybe* 10% tariffs were realistic after some phantomatic “Mar-a-Lago Accord” that even got editorials late this week.
While we are still waiting for the Futures Markets opening 5 pm CST on Sunday, the crypto is sliding further.
Remember at the meeting with world leaders back in his first term—and they all laughed at him (Trump)? Does anyone remember what that was and when it was?
I’m wondering if there is a connection with the tariffs and that event?
And could Marjorie look at it?
KG, good post! That reminds me of Trump being laughed at during one of the White House Correspondents Dinners when Obama was president. A room laughs at him and he makes them pay. In the latter case (the U.N.) will it be the world economy? Seems like his way of thinking to me.
I was reading a column by a university professor of economics at a Southeastern European university and she says:
“At this point, it is impossible to assess whether this approach will bear fruit and truly lead to reindustrialization and a new technological revolution in America. Much will depend, to begin with, on how America’s largest trading partners will react. Namely, unraveling three decades of systematically built intertwining of the world’s largest and most deeply and widely interconnected economies cannot be achieved without serious short-term economic consequences for all involved. If the Americans successfully overcome this first obstacle, it is still not clear how it is possible to make American production competitive in other markets. But what is certain is that there is no going back: the era of cheap labor and the unlimited flow of cheap goods is giving way to the era of geopolitical calculations, strategic protectionism and the fight for technological advantage.”
I was especially struck by the question: how exactly will America, if reindustrialized, be price-competitive in today’s world?
Neptune as a planet, I think someone mentioned when it was in Sagittarius (makes sense: dissolution [Neptune] of international borders [Sagittarius]) globalization began, now currently just entering Aries is a harbinger of something here.
“Neptune as a planet, I think someone mentioned when it was in Sagittarius (makes sense: dissolution [Neptune] of international borders [Sagittarius]) globalization began”
Makes sense. I had a quick look at the two European Union charts in Marjorie’s article on the EU in 2025.
The 1957 chart has Neptune in Libra, which makes sense as that chart led to the dissolution and blending of laws (Libra=balance, symbol of justice) across the then EEC. The Maastricht Treaty, which had Neptune in Sagittarius, introduced freedom of movement for all EU citizens (and I think it created the concept of an EU citizen for the first time), as opposed to just workers and students as before. It thus dissolved borders.
What is Aries associated with?
I looked up the US Insurrection Act, per JB’s comment below, 4th April 9:36 am (for which comments, thank you!). A chart for the date of the Act, March 3, 1807, has a worrisome exact inconjunct aspect (150) to Trump’s tariff announcement: Uranus 0 Scorpio 02’Rx to the announcement’s Neptune at 0 Aries 08’.
The Act’s natal Uranus falls into the 2nd house of personal wealth of the announcement. Neptune is in the 8th house of other people’s money, banks and debt. So, it’s about money. Neptune at 0 Scorpio is at a critical degree, indicating uncertainty, unformed (uninformed) ideas, and confusion. One foot still in the old sign and the other not fully in the new one. It’s not surprising things are so crazy for a planet that rules ‘far out’ thinking. Neptune and the Nodes are also at the same declination, 1 South.
The Insurrection Act’s Uranus is semisquare (45) to the announcement’s ascendant of 14 Virgo 25’. The tariff announcement Neptune is quindecile (165) to the ascendant at 14 Virgo. These are difficult indicators for the birth of a new transnational project. The quindecile is billed as a minor aspect, but I view it more as an ongoing headache with a dubvious future unless other stellar aspects offset it, which they don’t.
Furthermore, the announcement chart’s Chiron at 22 Aries is precisely (to the second) inconjunct USA natal Neptune at 22 Virgo (time of Trump’s speech at the White House, per C-Span, was April 2, 4:05 pm).
Perhaps Trump raised this onslaught of executive orders, purges of agencies, immigrants, and now tariffs for a purpose unknown to any but him? Did his secretaries even know what he meant to do (Neptune says likely not). Is he planning a more sophisticated, post-Jan. 6th insurrection? What does he gain except a pile of unstable stable coins? His actions have led to huge public protests (as happening now). Could this be followed with the Insurrection Act or declaring martial law?
With Neptune at 0, he certainly is an agent of chaos. But markets are pretty realistic. Maybe they will bring him to heel, along with a wake up in Congress? Money talks and Neptune is the most fungible planet of all.
Maybe by the time Neptune gets into Aries for good (end of January 2026) and is seated fully in Aries at about 3 degrees (no more retrogrades, February 2027), some sanity will return. The midterms are in November 2026, when Neptune at 1 Aries Rx 43’, will touch Trump’s 6th house cusp for the first time. Maybe he’ll have lost the majority by then and start playing golf permanently. There’s hope.
Here is the text of the Act, and an introduction to it from Wikipedia:
CHAP. XXXIX. An Act authorizing the employment of the land and naval forces of the United States, in cases of insurrections .
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, That in all cases of insurrection, or obstruction to the laws, either of the United States, or of any individual state or territory, where it is lawful for the President of the United States to call forth the militia for the purpose of suppressing such insurrection, or of causing the laws to be duly executed, it shall be lawful for him to employ, for the same purposes, such part of the land or naval force of the United States, as shall be judged necessary, having first observed all the pre-requisites of the law in that respect . APPROVED, March 3, 1807.
Wikipedia: “The Insurrection Act of 1807 is a United States federal law[1] that empowers the president of the United States to deploy the U.S. military and federalized National Guard troops within the United States in particular circumstances, such as to suppress civil disorder, insurrection, or rebellion. The act provides a “statutory exception” to the Posse Comitatus Act of 1878, which limits the use of military personnel under federal command for law enforcement purposes within the United States. Before invoking the powers under the act, 10 U.S.C. § 254 requires the President to publish a proclamation ordering the insurgents to disperse. As part of the Posse Comitatus Act, these provisions have since been amended. There are exceptions rooted in the president’s own constitutional authority. Defense Department guidelines describe “homeland defense” as a “constitutional exception” to Posse Comitatus restrictions, meaning that measures necessary to protect national security from external threats are not subject to the same limitations…..”etc.
Note: re. Trump’s 6th house cusp – it is 1 Aquarius 43′ (per the 10:54 am birth time). Which means transiting Neptune would sextile the 6th cusp from 1 Aries 43′ in the 8th house, and trine his 12th cusp on the other end. An easy aspect to either house. Might he just retire to enjoy his bitcoins? ….And then Vance?
@SweetGrapes: Trump is using all the tricks and rabbits that his supporters can pull out of the hat, to justify and enable a third term…and beyond. Several such articles have appeared online, mainly with nonsensical dialogue.
Sidebar to Solaia: since last week, CNN appears to have gone the route of being a pay-for website. Few articles and videos are revenue free. Mainly now, I use BBC for my news.
Sorry – correction again, the announcement’s Neptune is at 0 Aries, not Scorpio!
Some observers believed the 4pm timing was due to the exact close of the stock market here in the US, so the media wouldn’t be able to report on the immediate market downslide, but focus on him instead.
Excellent point about how all this is about him. And sadly, true … it’s been a long time since one person could single-handedly derail the entire world.
Can’t resist posting this quote, from Victor Hugo in 1850. I’ve commented on the astrology of Neptune’s discovery (conjunct Saturn in Aquarius) below. But reading this gave me pause for thought during our current chaos:
“A day will come when you France, you Russia, you England, you Germany, you all, nations of the continenet without losing your distinctive qualities and your glorious individuality, will forge yourselves into a closer and higher unity….A day will come when these two great groupings that face each other, the United States of America and the United States of Europe, will join hands across the seas, exchanging their goods, their trade, their industry, their arts and their genius, reclaiming the world…” Address to the Peace Society of Great Britain, Paris, 1850.
Neptune had entered Pisces in 1848, year of European revolutions, and The Communist Manifesto. As Neptune moves between Pisces and Aries, alpha and omega of the zodiac, we’re certainly in the midst of a bumpy ride.
The year 1848 saw so many innovations, I watched a documentary recently about the Spiritualist movement and how it began in 1848 with the Fox sisters’ case in the U.S. It set off a whole movement still going to this day as the sèance and table tipping became popular, often held in Victorian drawing rooms. It was at this point too that paranormal phenomena was put on stage as a form of entertainment, presumably then as now there was a yearning or need in the population for proof of a world beyond this one. Neptune in Pisces themes. The Pre=Raphaelite Brotherhood was formed in this year too. A harking back to a mythical Arthurian past and a nostalgia for a golden middle ages, along with a Socialist philosophy. Friedrich Engels and Karl Marx publish the Communist Manifesto in German in this year. It demonstrates how these ingresses can give birth to some transformative historical movements.
Somethings stinks. The US government infrastructure is not set up for and has no capacity for the collection of tariffs. It wasn’t ready even before Musk gutted various agencies, including people at IRS, which is a possible agency to train employees, if not actually process the tariff input and manage the data and the money. On the banking side, the bucks won’t be in crypto, that’s for sure.
A whole set of worldwide, incoming and outgoing tariffs can’t be set up overnight. It would be a monumental organizing and accounting task. Like setting up Apple overnight, only bigger. The reality would take months, or years to get running, with importers to the US needing information and doing calculations from all over the planet. It would have to be set up/designed by a US government tariff agency so importers can file electronically and and then pay the money to the government. The government then has to funnel it to treasury, etc. It is mind boggling (not that it couldn’t be done), but who in the Trump administration is ready to handle it? Suzy Wiles?
And what about the systems on the other side – when the other country collects import taxes from US companies? Not only do the tariffs not make any business sense, it’s damn near impossible to design such a tariff system and not bankrupt the country in the process.
The conclusion has to be there is not a serious intent within the US government to ACTUALLY collect money from US importers. Are the importers supposed to design their own tariff system? Maybe it’s a hoax! LOL – except it’s not very funny. Certainly it won’t be a one day miracle.
Trump is making a mess. Him showing a board with a list of countries (and penguins) on the White House lawn does not ‘make it so’. The nonsense formula for the calculation of the tariffs is the least of the crazy mystery.
So, what’s is really going on? Nobody knows. Maybe Trump just pulled a fast one on his own advisors? Heard any logical explanations from any of them? No.
He wants a huge fuss (he does love attention), but then what? He wants to win and we see Russia is not included on the tariff list, nor is North Korea. Is he thinking he can corner the world economic order with the US military as backup, and together with Russia and North Korea ït will fix the world right up? Well, he’s given Iran a 2 month deadline of some kind. He must be figuring everybody will cave, or if not, he start a war, like against the Houthis, only in China? Just guessing….
@SweetGrapes, love this, because I think this is many of us feel. I just have to say about Trump: They obvious do not have a plan here. Really, pretty much not anywhere, except unnecessarily gruel deportations of people in the US legally. I just read about Robert Kennedy jr. having to walk back some HHS layoffs, but telling firing these people wasn’t a mistake.
Have to say, though, that Russia and North Korea not being on that tariff list is because their imports are already sanctioned. WH is looking at some additional sanctions to Russia, too, when “negociations” with Russia fail. I guess that at this point it’s clear to everybody but Steve Witkoff and Trump half the time (even during his first term, his views always reflected those of the last person he respected he’d spoken to) these are not going anywhere, as Russia keeps bombing Ukrainian civilians.
Some reports say the mathematically ridiculous tariff formula was handpicked by Trump from options given to him most likely by Peter Navarro. Navarro is a July 15th, 1949 Sun Cancer, Pisces Moon, and Mars sitting on DJT’s Gemini Sun. Navarro comes from a solid academic background, and has mostly been registered either Democrat or an Independent.
But obviously, there’s something that radicalized many early Boomer generation men. Maybe the 2008 Financial crisis that hit just when they were thinking about semi retiring?
Which makes me think: If this Trump Slump persist, and ends up eating much of the retirement funds people born in the mid- and late-1960’s have gathered, the consequences might be very unpredictable. Early Gen X white men have been the age group breaking for Trump at the most pronounced numbers. My idea of a typical MAGA person is a small/medium size business owner, maybe a construction contractor. These people’s lives will be upended by tariffs. I can see Trump himself personally skating away from all responsability, but the rest of the admin might have it hard.
@Solaia, Navarro is first and foremost a political opportunist. He was based in my city of San Diego while teaching economics, I believe, at UC Irvine in Orange County, California, and ran for multiple offices, including mayor and Congress, as a Democrat before San Diego turned solidly Democratic. He was and is generally reviled by both parties, neither of which has any use for him.
I’m wondering whether the tariffs might be a distraction from something else since there’s no structure in place to collect and manage them.
Navarro is a slippery character. He has been citing in his writings a supposedly Harvard-educated investment expert and “China hawk” named Ron Vara, which turns out to be an anagram of “Navarro.” So that’s Peter Navarro for you.
Has anyone read The Signs of the Times: The Neptune Factor and America’s Destiny
Book by Stan Barker,
Thanks for the tip, IanS! I’ll track down a copy.
The US Sibley Solar Arc Saturn is currently conjunct the natal Mars at 21 Gemini in the 7th House of the chart covering “foreign affairs; relations with other countries, whether friendly or hostile, political or commercial.” Presumably this would tie in with conflict about trade borders, restrictions etc both by the US and the rest of the world. The US progressed Saturn at 2 Scorpio in the 11th house is moving to trine the US natal Venus at 3 Cancer in the 7th house which may reflect the impact this is going to have on every ones money a fact perhaps emphasised by the fact that the US SA Moon representing the people is at 4 Scorpio. All this will being influenced by transiting Pluto in Aquarius which will be in mutual reception with that progressed Saturn.The US natal Pluto was sextile transiting retrograde Mercury at the time Trump made his tariff speech.
With regard to the EU 1958 chart the progressed Saturn is now at 25 Sagittarius conjunct its natal Mercury at 26 Sagittarius and its SA Mars is conjunct its natal Chiron/Venus conjunction at 14/15 Aquarius.
At the time the US government announced the new tariffs Mars by transit was conjunct the US Sibley chart’s 8th house retrograde Mercury at 24 Cancer and Donald Trumps natal Saturn at 23 Cancer. It was trine transiting Saturn, retrograde Venus and retrograde Mercury in Pisces. Mars was conjunct the North Node in the Chinese 1907 Revolution chart and trine its Saturn at 25 Pisces. Mars was trine the Mercury at 23 Pisces in the UK 1927 chart
Uranus at 24 Taurus was sextile all these planets. It was square the UK 1801 Saturn at 23 Leo, the UK 1927 Moon/Neptune at 24 Leo. Uranus conjoined the EU Maastricht Treaty Moon at 24 Taurus while opposing 4th House Pluto/Mars conjunction at 24 Scorpio and Mercury at 19 Scorpio in that chart. It was square the Maastricht Saturn at 23 Aquarius. Both transiting Mars and Uranus were inconjunct the EU 1958 natal Mercury at 26 Sagittarius.
Mercury in those charts presumably signifies trade and commerce among other things. Its position in the US chart would highlight its role in American national finances which for the first 125 years of the country’s existence was largely funded by tariffs. Trumps move looks to pose a very real threat to the EU particularly as envisaged by Maastricht where trade is both tied up with the political power of the institution and how the organisation holds together It also looks central to its very identity as Mercury, Mars, Pluto and the Sun are all in Scorpio in the 4th House.
There was a lot of energy flowing because of all those trines and sextiles but whether it can be harnessed positively remains to be seen. Those ill omened fixed stars Marjorie mentions certainly don’t help. Trump’s natal Mars at 26 Leo squares that opposition between transiting Uranus and the EU Maastricht Pluto/Mars so this move could be even more confrontational than any he has made so far.
It is worth noting that tariffs once levied become hard to remove. Even though Smoot Hawley was repealed in 1932 it took decades for first FDR and then GATT to unwind the consequences.
I wonder what you think about the EU Treaty of Rome, 25 March 1957 chart, Hugh? It’s looking rattled now. The early degree planets also make links to the UK’s Jupiter/Uranus/Pluto yod so that moves by Neptune, Saturn, Uranus and Pluto energise both charts at the more or less the same time.
ToR has Neptune 1 Scorpio, Moon 2 Aquarius, Uranus 2 Leo, and Mars 4 Gemini.
The ToR Mercury, 9 Aries, has just had the recent Aries eclipse on it. In the Placidus chart (Book of World Horoscopes) merchant Mercury rules the 9th house of the far horizons, and the 12th house of self-undoing, and hidden enemies. That house does contain protective Jupiter in Virgo, which may soften things around adversaries a little.
Financial Venus in this chart is 29 Pisces, ruling the financial 8th house, and the Libran ascendant. Venus is/has been under pressure from tr Saturn, Neptune, and the Nodes and is aligned with rise and fall Scheat in Pegasus. Further pressure comes with September’s Solar Eclipse 29 Virgo, which opposes Saturn Rx in Pisces. Neptune returns to late Pisces in October.
I also noticed that Pluto in the ToR chart is 28 Leo in the 11th house of legislature, but also perhaps the alliances and group endeavours the EU aims for?
In June tr Mars in Leo squares Uranus in Taurus at that degree. At that point, tr Jupiter has just entered Cancer, squaring both tr Saturn and Neptune mid June, which may be helpful, I’m not sure. It looks like an intense phase anyway. The Aquarius Solar Eclipse in February 2026 is 28 Aquarius, square Uranus, so quite an emphasis on that Pluto, and the power it represents. The fixed energies can be hard to budge, but perhaps this could be the beginning of a new kind of EU, eventually?
Possibly all this impacts on the USA Moon in Aquarius too – emphasising the American people, and how they are experiencing all this as ‘We the People’?
Thanks. I forgot about the Treaty of Rome Chart which I suppose is the true foundation of what we now call the EU. The current Mercury and Venus retrogrades all started when those planets were conjunct the ToR Mercury. The Pluto/Mars opposition later this month falls on the Moon/Uranus opposition in that chart which is probably going to be significant.
The stock markets have seen sharp falls today as Uranus has sextiled Saturn and then Mars. On the 5 April 2025 Mars will be trine Saturn and on 6 April 2025 the Sun will sextile Jupiter and Mars will trine Venus. The really interesting day will be Monday 7 April next week when Saturn conjuncts Venus at 25 Pisces and Mercury stations direct at 26 Pisces.
Venus then sextiles Uranus on 8 April 2025. It then makes no more aspects until after it turns direct on 13 April 2025 at 24 Pisces exactly trine the US natal Mercury. The retrogrades have generated a significant amount of confusion. The full fallout should become clearer as both planets track back over their path and repeat some of the aspects they made during the retrograde.
Thanks Hugh. Regarding those late fixed degrees, I came across this –
“When it was first sighted by the astronomer J. G. Galle, on 23 September 1846, Neptune was in exact conjunction with Saturn in 25 Aquarius……At the time the concept of the United States of Europe was publicly announced at the end of 1847, transiting Neptune had moved to 28 Aquarius, while Saturn had moved into 7 Pisces…” The Astrology of Neptune, Liz Greene
Since the ToR powerful Pluto is 28 Leo, and there’s the February eclipse at 28 Aquarius, I have a feeling this is a very meaningful time for Europe.
Jane and Hugh…. you absolutely astonish me with your grasp of history, historical astrology charts and the current times!! I am in awe and learn SO much from you both! Thank-you.
Mars was at 24 Cancer in the Trump 2.0 Inauguration Chart too. It was conjunct the Inauguration IC, as well as conjunct the 1776 Mercury in the 8th.
That suggests the main financial impact of Trump’s tariffs will be in the US itself.
The US is incredibly financialised with 60% of the population owning stocks. As a result the Federal govt is more dependant on capital gains tax receipts than any other govt in the world. Falling stock markets put a hole in the govt’s tax receipts. People feel impoverished too when their investments evaporate, which will affect their spending.
My feeling is that Trump will get Liz Truss’d – the astrology points to it. Saturn is coming up to a conjunction with the North Node – apparently Caligula was removed when Saturn and the NN were conjunct. Because the US doesn’t have a Parliamentary system, it’s not as easy to make Trump resign as it was for the Tories to force Truss out though.
@Candy, if only we could “Liz Truss” him and toss him from office for incompetence and malfeasance!
He’d have to be removed, either constitutionally through impeachment, which is highly unlikely considering the terror he generates among Republicans controlling Congress, a resignation (which he’d never agree to because he’s drunk on the power of the presidency and knows the office is the only thing protecting him from prison), extreme illness or death through whatever means.
The other possibility is a counter-coup by angry Americans, since many consider what he’s done in destroying the US government since being sworn is in effect an actual coup. Again, a possibility but not likely, alas.
Trump’s cabinet can remove him using the 25th amendment.
The Saturn – North Node conjunction in Pisces will occur within 3 degrees of the IC of the US Sibley chart, and tr Neptune is almost exactly conjunct that IC. Saturn will then move to conjunct Neptune and the IC. So something in the homeland is getting removed or dissolved
When the Praetorian guard removed Caligula, there was an exact Saturn-NN conjunction.
When Hitler committed suicide, Saturn and the NN were conjunct with a four degree orb.
When Stalin died of natural causes, Jupiter was conjunct the south node with a four degree orb. Great relief for the Russians.
When Mao Zedong died, Uranus was exactly conjunct the north node. Started a vicious three-year struggle for power between his widow and Deng.
Candy, JB: Good points re. the NN conjunction with Saturn. That occurs, according to my ephemeris, approx. April 21. But because the NN goes direct that day, for the next 4 days, it may not perfect exactly. Meanwhile, Saturn moves ahead. So the 2 close points change directions for a time and get out of sync. However, your points about the orb may be meaningful too.
Overall, it seems more likely Trump will continue on to play golf and ignore reality. If he were to be deposed his administrators would have to switch to Vance, which they presumably are loath to do because Vance is so unpopular with the people at large.
The Sun in the tariff announcement chart is firmly in Aries. It will conjunct Chiron at 22 degrees (if you use the tariff chart as a birth chart) by progression, but soon by transit. That may be trouble for Trump as the Sun, but it won’t last but a few days.
On the day of the announcement transiting Chiron was precisely inconjunct (150) US natal Neptune at 22 Virgo. The US Neptune (ideals, sleazy deals and the whole gammut of beliefs) is what gets hit by the announcement. The planets that will change direction are the inner ones, Venus Rx and Mercury Rx. That doesn’t look like a change in leadership, though supporters could switch the leaders they support.
It seems certain to me, that short of a stroke or worse, Trump won’t resign. It takes time to invoke the 25th, even if it is faster than impeachment (which won’t happen) imo. Also, the 25th has never been invoked successfully in the past, so the entire process is up for grabs. As it stands, it’s only words on paper.
“tr Neptune is almost exactly conjunct that IC.” (of the US Sibley Chart).
The last time Neptune was conjunct the IC of the US Sibley Chart, the US Civil War occurred, i.e. the homeland itself dissolved.
Are we in for an encore?
The period from mid-month looks ominous, where Trump might invoke the Insurrection Act to consolidate power amidst the turmoil.
On the day he took office, Trump signed an EO on the declaration of an emergency at the US Southern border. Under Section 6b of the order, Trump directs Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth and Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem to submit a joint report on the border, including recommendations for actions that “may be necessary to obtain complete operational control of the southern border. He specifically cites one option—”including whether to invoke the Insurrection Act of 1807.”
The deadline for the report is 20 April. Mars trines Neptune the day prior, in the lead up to its final pass opposite Pluto, and the particularly fractious period from then until early May which Marjorie has mentioned before.
https://www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/2025/01/declaring-a-national-emergency-at-the-southern-border-of-the-united-states/
[Sorry Jennifer I didn’t mean to put this as a reply to your post below]
Yes, it’s deeply hypocritical and proof that political memory is remarkably short. Just five years ago, the European-made AstraZeneca vaccine was offered to the United States at cost, one of the fairest trade gestures imaginable to the American people during a global crisis. Yet America rejected it, despite its proven effectiveness and widespread use abroad. While Europe moved swiftly to protect its citizens, the U.S. delayed, paid more for alternatives, and almost certainly lost lives in the name of regulatory caution (and convenient corporate profit).
Now, the same guy is imposing tariffs on European imports, accusing allies of unfair practices – conveniently forgetting that, during the pandemic, it was Europe offering partnership, not exploitation. These tariffs now punish the very nations that stepped up when the U.S. hesitated.
The hypocrisy is stark: when solidarity could have saved lives and billions in taxpayer funds, the U.S. of Donald Trump turned inwards. Now it weaponises that same mindset, not to protect its people, but to score political points through economic aggression.
Astrologically, this speaks volumes. The Sibley chart of the United States is, as we know, dominated by Cancer with Venus and Jupiter conjoined in the seventh house, symbolising a nation that ideally seeks nurturing partnerships and emotional security through alliances. But with transiting Neptune now entering Aries and squaring that Venus-Jupiter conjunction, delusions around values, foreign relations, and financial fairness are surfacing. There’s a fog of self-righteousness – actions cloaked in the language of protectionism that mask deeper insecurities and contradictions.
Neptune in Aries brings a dangerous kind of idealistic bravado – moral posturing that lacks clarity. As it clashes with the U.S.’s Cancerian desire for loyalty and safety, the result is confused diplomacy, selective memory, and an erosion of the very alliances that once offered real solidarity.
Actually “confused aggression” is a description that works for Neptune in Aries and Trump himself.
It occurs to me the tariffs announcement comes a few days after Neptune moved into Aries. Maybe it’s just a coincidence because I can’t easily see the symbolism – other than perhaps that Trump believes the USA has been taken advantage of by all these other countries and therefore the victim (Neptune) is standing up for itself (Aries).
Will be very interesting to see what happens when Saturn arrives into Aries at the end of May. Probably a dose of reality about this decision. As André points out the Saturn-Neptune conjunction will be square America’s Venus and he suggests it’ll be economic wipeout.
Yes, GD most certainly that’s what came across in that speech. Bully cosplaying the victim. The big whinge about how unfair the rest of the entire planet is to America, as if America was a fragile blushing virgin being taken advantage of by rough, mean bullies. Classic DARVO! Presumably that’s why he levied a massive 48% on Vietnam, who had the temerity to defeat their occupiers half a century ago. Aggressive victimhood = Neptune in Aries.
Apologies for inaccuracy. Tariff on Vietnam is 46% not 48% as I stated. However, Vietnam is now a key manufacturing hub and this will undoubtedly affect the clothing, footwear, furniture and toy industries. Major companies such as Adidas and Nike will face increased costs as a result.
The main takeaway I got from that speech was that of an angry, vindictive child. Very little reason or logic in any of it.
Indeed and he’s playing it like he’s being magnanimous in only applying a tariff half of the other (e.g. 20% tariff on EU where he claims EU tariff is 39%; Vietnam 46% to 90%). What has become apparent once the numbers were revealed is that he’s applying tariffs in response to a trade deficit. More misdirection and lies.
It occurs to me that Neptune into Aries is occurring in Trump’s chart with it arriving in his 8th house of “give and take in relationships” (I recall cusp being 28-29Pisces). So he’s reacted to how this transit is making him feel weak with his usual bullying, selfish, take/take/take methods but Neptune is trying to teach him with subsequent passes that it’s ineffective and he needs to learn to give. Which of course he won’t but that’s by the by …
Inspired by an item on the news tonight, I looked at what Marjorie wrote on 26th March, 2024 about the swift and shocking collapse of the Baltimore Bridge. The Bridge was named for Francis Scott Key, who wrote the words for The Star-spangled Banner…..there were a number of amazing astro links between FSK and that catastrophe just over one year ago. Perhaps it was an early warning for the ‘land of the free’?
“Does seem not only a tragic accident but slightly spooky in terms of its symbolic significance.”
As we’ve discussed before, sometimes a striking disaster like that can herald turbulent times for the location or country involved. The recent Aries Eclipse opposed the 9 Libra MC for the Baltimore collapse chart, and was close to its Sun at 6 Aries.
An apt metaphor for a Saturn-Neptune conjunction square US Venus-Sun-Jupiter.
When you think about how relatively quickly the Soviet Union split at the last Saturn-Neptune conjunction, it’s not inconceivable that America which has spent 250yrs building itself could fall apart in just a few years. Astrologically it has just had its Pluto return which suggests need for extreme rebuild which didn’t notably occur. And will soon be having its 3rd Uranus Return to perhaps trigger that.
Trump believes these tariffs are needed because U.S. trade deals are “one-sided” and don’t benefit America. But is he really that clueless about the history of the military-industrial complex and the post-WWII global order?
It’s not one-sided at all.
In exchange for running trade deficits, the U.S. secures:
– Global influence through economic and military alliances
– Dollar dominance, since most global trade is still done in USD
– Military leverage, with bases in allied countries and strategic regions
Either Trump’s being deliberately obtuse, or he’s the perfect Russian sleeper agent, because these tariffs risk pushing more countries away from the U.S. and straight into the arms of BRICS.
BRICS was born out of frustration with U.S. dollar dominance and Washington’s tendency to punish countries that don’t toe the line. Cuba and Iran are classic examples who have been sanctioned for daring to challenge U.S. authority.
Meanwhile, Russia, a BRICS member, has made it clear it wants to weaken the dollar’s role in global trade. And it’s working.
The U.S. currently enjoys around 85% control of global trade settlement in dollars, but with each new tariff, each fractured alliance, that grip loosens. As more nations look for alternatives, BRICS expands, and new coalitions emerge to diversify away from a U.S-centric system.
Its clear the American empire has been declining for some years, but I think Trump’s role is accelerating it. I just don’t know if it’s out of his stupidity and narcissism or if it’s deliberate to help Putin.
@Jo, yes, Trump is that clueless. And he’s stupid, ignorant and narcissistic and, based on his behavior, eager to bow the knee to Putin and give his master whatever he wants, including the destruction of his own country. It was Khrushchev who forecast that the Russians/Soviets would destroy the US from within. And Trump, a reported Russian asset since the ’80s, is Putin’s tool to accomplish that. Mission in process of accomplishment.
Trump has put 10 percent reciprocal tariffs on the Chagos Islands, even though it is all American Personnel there. And the same with Australia. They say it is their policy to never put tariffs on other countries. Even when some put tariffs onto them. So Trump has lied about that.what a nightmare!
It is telling that the tariffs are for all nations except Russia (if any further proof of his role as an asset were needed). Also interesting to note is that S. Korea and Japan have now entered into an agreement to supply China with chips in exchange for the resources needed to make them. So much for isolating China. Wondering what will transpire when Mars squares his Uranus soon.
I believe US sanctions on Russia are already so tight there was no room for more. I read somewhere (can’t find it now, sorry) that Trump has a lot of personal $$ tied up in Russia; if the Trump position on Russia changes, I would expect it to be easing of sanctions, not adding more.
To me, the key transit will be the Saturn-Neptune conjunction square US Venus, which will bring an economic wipeout. Canadian PM Mark Carney just said the if the US doesn’t want to be a world leader any more, Canada will take its place. His Uranus-Pluto conjunction in the first house is showing the way of the future, while the US has turned to the past.
Mark Carney is such a contrast to Trump. A DPhil in Economics from Oxford, then Governor of both the Bank of Canada and the Bank of England (one after the other, not simultaneously).
At the very least, I’d trust him more on economics than I would Trump.
The UK’s biggest trade with the US is in crude oil. I would guess most people here would be more than happy to switch that trade to Canada.
Just an observation. Trump started blabbering at 16 o´clock, but he signed the executive order approximately an hour later, which would move the Moon-Jupiter conjunction onto the MC, pushing Mercury, Saturn and NN into the 7th house (Placidus). I tried to find the exact time of signing but had no success.
Intriguing.
That would put Mercury *retrograde,* Saturn, and the often over-ambitious North Node in the seventh house of trading partners and open enemies.
Trump’s obsession with tariffs is nothing new; he has been banging the drum for them for decades. He harks back to the old days (late 19th, early twentieth century) when tariffs, not taxes, were a major source of America’s revenue. He fails to grasp or accept that the World has changed dramatically in the past 100 years. Is there anything in his chart that might account for this; or is he simply doing it because he enjoys causing disruption?
Saturn-Venus in Cancer I’d reckon Ken. Probably his Dad told him tariffs are great and he still believes it. At the least, I suspect his introduction of tariffs is motivated by the idea he can fund government through them and therefore (legally) avoid ever paying any income tax. That Saturn, especially within Cancer, the signs of parents and old habits will have a strong grip
Tariffs are taxes, just paid in a different way. In this case, imposed by the no/low taxes-free trade party …
It’s in line with his isolationist, moi vs the world, walled up mentality, which also appeals to a large number of Americans, since it took Pearl Harbor to bring the US into WWII.
Buckle up, kids, we’re going.
Watching Dow Jones tanking real time. To an extent Chuck Grassley, a 1933 Virgo Sun has introduced a bipartisan bill with Democrat Maria Cantwell requiring President to bring tariff decisions before the Senate within 48 hours of of imposing them.
I just heard the Dow is down 1200 points and the NASDAQ, tech heavy, down 400.
Will Big Business decide to Do Something? I think someone will….
From Heather Cox Richardson:
“Just five months ago, on October 19, 2024, The Economist ran a special report on America’s economy. That economy was, the magazine said, “the envy of the world.” Today, stock market futures plummeted after President Donald J. Trump announced that he will impose a 10% tariff on all imports to the United States, with higher rates on about 60 countries he claims engage in unfair trade practices, including China, Japan, Vietnam, and South Korea, as well as the European Union.”
What economy would that be? If the economy had been O.K., would so many people feel dissatisfied and vote en masse for this candidate? Heather Cox Richardson is selective and wrong. And the stock market is many things, but it is not the economy. Statistics and numbers, sometimes willingly, sometimes unwillingly, have a way of obscuring the issues and are often unable to tell the whole story, which is often not just quantification.
I note that transiting Mars is on Trump’s Saturn-Venus in Cancer which really seems to be symbolic here with putting up walls for homegrown interests and involving money.
You forgot the Mars/Saturn aspect which is like driving with the brake on.
So it doesn’t seem as if this will go anywhere.
@Roderick, yes, see how Chuck Grassley reacted. There isn’t infrastructure behind this. Money can’t “grow home” if the manufacturing has been killed, and the speculative aspect of it is tanking.
There seems now to be a finance business/Republican response mounting on this. Some people just need to have this moment to have their bubbles burst.
It still may be too little, too late, because of the *events*, though.
@Roderick, am I right in recalling you’re now in Alabama? What are you hearing from people? Is support for Trump starting to slip? Thanks!
Hi Nicole, yes Trump’s support is starting to erode nationally. Some Republicans are already raising the alarm with his tarrifs, there is a warning by Sen. Rand Paul published in a news outlet, I qoute ‘Paul told reporters on Wednesday that, in addition to changes in markets, tariffs have also ‘led to political decimation.’
‘When [former President William] McKinley most famously put tariffs on in 1890, they lost 50 percent of their seats in the national election,’ The Kentucky Republican noted, bringing up the last time a president invoked such a sweeping tariff overhaul.
‘When [Smoot-Hawley] put on their tariff in the early 1930s, we lost the House and the Senate for 60 years,’ the senator continued, this time noting a congressionally-led tariff regime.’ Paula stated.
Also in Wisconsin Supreme Court race, Elon Musk poured millions into the campaign, but he was defeated with his millions, the liberals won. It looks like Elon Musk’s Uranus is already affecting him since his birth time is not verified yet. He is already experiencing lots of problems in his life and businesses. It was announced a few days ago that he will exit DOGE and focus on his businesses which is a little too late. His brand has been damaged. And Elon Musk being a Cancerian, he might not leave quietly, he might expose Trump’s secret financial dealings in public. We all know what Trump does to those he use to do his dirty work after they fall.
Thanks! That’s my sense, too — but I’m in blue Southern California. I read that EVERY county moved left in its voting patterns in the Wisconsin Supreme Court race. And the vote margins for the R victors in the two deep red house seats were cut in half or more. Both won by only 14 points instead of the prior occupants’ 30 and 33 points. There is hope percolating.
When you say I forgot – can you explain what you mean? I was just pointing out the symbolism and how transiting Mars is probably giving Trump the opportunity to express how his Saturn-Venus in Cancer views the country is best protected.
Good point GD. Some kind of angry Mars/Saturn moment for sure. Yet how long can these tariffs last? Everything may change again (and again) before the end of the year. Of interest is the fixed star, Pollux, in the constellation Gemini. It is at 23 Cancer, and will be highlighted – along with Trump’s natal Saturn-Venus and the Tariff’s Mars – by transiting Jupiter in Cancer this autumn. Here’s what Elsbeth Ebertin says about it:
“Pollux has a strong Martian nature and has the name ‘the wicked boy’ of the of the sibling Twins. According to its nature, this star is brutal and tyrannical, violent and cruel if in conjunction with the Sun, Moon, Ascendant, MC or with malefics. Just as Mars has its good sides if the energy it creates is channeled constructively, so Pollux should not always be considered as unhelpful. The star badly place could manifest that way, not by the native misusing his energy but by others deceiving him and fate playing him some cruel tricks. Helper if in peril on voyages at sea. [Fixed Stars and Their Interpretation, Elsbeth Ebertin, 1928, p.41.]”
And V Robson says that Pollux with Mars suggests:
“With Mars: Violent, murderer or murdered, high position but final ruin, violent death by suffocation, drowning or assassination especially if the Moon be there also. [Robson, p.187.]”
And should probably factor in the USA’s own mercantile Mercury, 24 Cancer into the line-up of planets with the fixed star Pollux. Perhaps an influence on travel, communications, and, of course, trade.
It’s really sad to see what’s happening in the US with Donald Trump tariffs, he inherited a strong economy now he is destroying it with his personal agenda. Looking at the time and chart of the signing ceremony for his tarrifs, mercury is currently moving in a retrograde motion and being the trader of Zodiac, it means he is not going to achieve what he wants with the tarrifs, his plans are going to fail he will probably have to rescind them, or the congress or senate might do so for him. Even in my personal experience, having studied astrology for so many years, decisions that are made under mercury in a reverse motion tend not to produce the desired results. Economically what the tarrifs are going to bring for US, looking at the chart, is high inflation, high unemployment, economic instability and most companies in the US are going to struggle to make profits, their profit margins are going to fall. The US is going to pay a hefty price, unless if they reverse those tarrifs soon. By the look of things, I don’t see them lasting beyond 2025. Though unfortunately they would have already caused economic and reputational damage to the US, and only because of one man.