Frank Sheeran, the central focus of Scorsese’s The Irishman was by all accounts a monster. A corrupt labor union official with links to the Bufalino crime family, he started his adult life with a long stretch in combat in World War 11 where he admitted involvement in several massacres and summary executions. He then moved onto murder for hire for organized crime, was set up as muscle in the teamsters union with Jimmy Hoffa whom he was later accused of assassinating; said he supplied guns for the Bay of Pigs anti-Castro forces; and further claimed he supplied rifles for the killing of JFK by the Mafia. He was convicted of labor racketeering, given a 32 year sentence but let out on medical grounds aged 71 and died of cancer aged 83.

Born 25 October 1920 in Camden. New Jersey, he had a formidably nasty chart – with a Scorpio Sun and North Node in a Water Grand Trine to Pluto trine Uranus; with Pluto in a brutal and ruthless opposition to Mars in Capricorn, making that the driving rod of the Grand Trine. His Mars opposition Pluto may also have been square an Aries Moon (almost certainly was). He also had Jupiter Saturn in Virgo.

Not a man you wanted to meet up a dark alley, for sure.

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More train-crash television as Boris Johnson’s erstwhile companion US tech entrepreneur Jennifer Arcuri gives an outspoken interview to be broadcast today. She says: ‘I’ve kept Johnson’s secrets – now he’s cast me aside like a one-night stand,’ and adds that she is heartbroken and humiliated over his blocking contact with her given their four year close friendship. There have been questions asked about him promoting her business while he was Mayor of London, securing her places on prestigious overseas trade trips and failing to disclose any personal interest. The Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) has postponed an announcement on whether there should be a criminal investigation into his alleged misconduct in public office until after the election. He denies any impropriety or having broken any rules.

Born 26 February 1985 in Louisville, Kentucky, (net sources) – see post September 30 2019 – she’s a Sun Pisces trine Pluto in Scorpio with a passionately enthusiastic Mars Venus in Aries and a pushily confident Pluto square Jupiter in Aquarius.

She has an irritated and unhappy tr Saturn square her Mars Venus from now through the first week of December; and also an emotionally pumped-up tr Pluto trine her Solar Arc Venus Mars across the New Year into 2020 and beyond so she’s unlikely to quieten down anytime soon.

Her relationship chart with Boris is fascinating with a Yod of Mars (Sun) inconjunct Pluto sextile Neptune. A Yod suggests a relationship that will transform the lives of both individuals in a fated way – and given that Mars is heavily involved probably with a good deal of aggravation. Tr Uranus is conjunct the composite Sun for the final time at the moment till mid December which will bring tensions into the open; and that will worsen into 2020 with tr Uranus conjunct the composite Sun/Mars in April and conjunct Mars in June – and trailing on into 2021. So the fireworks are likely to continue. It would be the final irony if his love life finally caught up with him.

Gordon Sondland, the US Ambassador at the centre of the Ukraine scandal driving the impeachment hearings, and a Trump donor and supporter, is stuck between a rock and a hard place as he faces giving testimony on Wednesday. A WH aide has testified that Sondland claimed to be acting on Trump’s orders in pushing for an investigation into the Bidens, and was regularly in touch with him. Sondland’s loyalty to Trump will be tempered by the fate of Roger Stone found guilty of lying to Congress and facing prison time. An analyst said: “If I was him, I would be very worried about a referral to the committee for a criminal charge. The committee now has a lot of leverage over him to get him to tell the truth.”

Sondland, born 16 July 1957 Seattle, Washington, was a hotel chain owner and then moved into merchant banking. He has a Cancer Sun sextile Jupiter and square Neptune; with a flashy five planets spread out through Leo – Uranus Mercury, Mars Venus, and Pluto; with a self-righteous Saturn in Sagittarius.

His Pluto is conjunct Trump’s Saturn Venus and is under considerable pressure from late January 2020 on and off through the year. He was looking very off balance in late October/ early November when he gave his earlier closed-door testimony, but looks suspiciously confident mid this month to mid December with tr Pluto square his Jupiter/Node; damped down slightly in the first few days of December by tr Saturn square his Solar Arc Venus. Then he’s facing losses late December to early February. He’s also got the devastating and confused Solar Arc Pluto conjunct his Neptune in 2020 as well as tr Pluto opposition his Sun. He’ll bounce again in the years thereafter with his Solar Arc Sun conjunct his Jupiter and Solar Arc Jupiter square his Pluto. But he won’t look back on this phase with much relish.

His relationship chart with Trump isn’t that straightforward with a needs-space composite Sun Uranus; a blow hot, blow cold Sun square Jupiter Saturn; and a power-struggling composite Mars Pluto. Tr Saturn will square the composite Neptune from this coming Wednesday till December 1^st for a frisson of uncertainty and doubt; will become over-excitable across New Year and through January; and very over-wrought late January to late February with tr Pluto opposition the composite Mercury sending bitter recriminations flying and harsh words spoken in discussions.

When Pope Benedict shook the Vatican by going against half a millenia’s tradition to resign in 2013, there was no protocol for what came next. Instead of disappearing into seclusion he stayed within the hallowed walls and still comments on church affairs. Which will make life tricky for his polar opposite the present Pope Francis.

This was the focus for Anthony McCarten’s stage play turned into a soon-to-be-streamed Netflix bio-pic The Two Popes (see post November 4 2019)  with Anthony Hopkins and Jonathan Pryce has also been turned into a book, launched now to spice up the premiere. In it, the conflicting characters of the two popes are laid bare. Benedict is a Bavarian-born intellectual theologian with little pastoral experience, who moulded much of the policies of Pope John Paul’s administration and became known as ‘God’s rottweiler’ for his crackdown on liberal ideas. According to McCarten, he tightened the church’s rules about disclosure of child abusing priests which led to even greater secrecy and cover up; and tripped into a Holocaust denier scandal which raised questions about his own attitudes having been born a few miles from Dachau and the Vatican’s Nazi connections during WW11. Benedict: 16 April 1927 4.15 am Marktl, Germany.

Francis, known as the ‘slum bishop’ was appalled by the poverty he saw ministering in Argentina, is more flexible about his tolerances and lives simply. Though the book raises questions about his association with the Argentina junta during the dirty war of the late 1970s/early 1980s with tens of thousands ‘disappeared.’  Francis: 17 December 1936 9pm Buenos Aires, Argentina.

There’s no doubt they do clash in their attitudes. Francis is a Sun Sagittarius with a reforming Uranus in the 10^th square Pluto; and a hope-for-a-better-society Saturn opposition Neptune. Benedict is a Sun Aries with a bookish, know-it-all Saturn in Sagittarius in the religious 9^th.

Benedict’s Sun is conjunct Francis’s MC and opposition Francis’ Mars; and Benedict’s Pluto is conjunct Francis’s Ascendant, with Benedict’s Mars opposition Francis’s Sun – so Benedict will want to control and direct his successor; and sees him as a rival.

Their relationship chart has a competitive, argumentative composite Sun opposition Mars; with a chained-together-and-resenting-it composite Saturn opposition Pluto in a disruptive square to Uranus.

It’s fairly moot now with Benedict fading in his nineties but fascinating all the same to see the stress lines laid bare.

“I am perhaps too honourable at times,” quoth Prince Andrew on his friendship with paedophile Jeffrey Epstein in a BBC interview. Hallelujah. If that was supposed to be a mea culpa apology it scores 0/10. Using the media to draw a line under an undesirable story usually backfires and there’s nothing in the immediate future suggesting Prince Andrew will stride out clothed in shining white with his halo back in place.

All his closest relationships – with his two daughters, Eugenie and Beatrice, former but still present wife Sarah, sister Anne and brother Edward, nephew William – are sagging badly over the next few weeks courtesy of tr Neptune in hard aspect to their composite Suns, Jupiters, Venus or Moon .

Prince Charles who never was a fan of his younger brother will be on a roller coaster path with him next year with tr Pluto opposition their composite Uranus and tr Saturn opposition Uranus and square Neptune. Whatever happens will alter the nature of their relationship radically.

The Queen, for whom Andrew is deemed the favourite, will be in a double bind but even she is less than enchanted from February onwards as their mutual admiration society is undermined first by tr Saturn conjunct the composite Jupiter and then tr Neptune square the composite Saturn from late March on and off for a year after. With worse just before mid year as tr Uranus starts to square the composite Mars opposition Pluto and for a year thereafter. That may, of course, involve other family events since both she and Prince Philip are in their nineties.

But Andrew’s protection goes once she loosens her grip on the reins.

He has a couple of devastatingly negative Pluto hard aspects to his Mars/Saturn and Venus/Saturn midpoints running now till mid December – they’ll bring disasters, accidents, setbacks and plummeting popularity. He’ll have a minor blip upwards from late January for a few weeks. But then tr Saturn will conjunct his 6^th house Mars, Venus from late February onwards, off and on for a year, which could bring health-related issues as well as work problems. Already events are being cancelled because of public antipathy towards him.

Late March onwards tr Pluto will square his midheaven, on and off till late 2021 – this usually brings a forced change in career or life direction. There will be resistance to the way he uses power or influence and it can be a humbling experience. There are also several Neptune transits to undermine his plans and create confusion, as well as perhaps bring secrets out into the open which is a Neptunian habit throughout 2020/21.

He doesn’t appear, from all past accounts from diplomats etc who had to suffer him on trade missions abroad, to have much insight into his behaviour. He seemed both to lack intelligence and humility which isn’t a great combination – stupidity and arrogance.

Marie Yovanovitch, the ousted U.S. ambassador to Ukraine said a “smear campaign” against her by the President and Rudy Giuliani, his personal lawyer, undermined U.S. national security and emboldened Russia. During impeachment proceedings she said she was “kneecapped” by corrupt interests and abandoned by State Department leaders.

Trump in his usual knee-jerk fit of bile tweeted a smear about her as she was testifying which Adam Schiff promptly labelled witness intimidation. And the Clinton prosecutor, Ken Starr, said he thought Trump’s tweet showed “extraordinarily poor judgment… I think this was quite injurious.” Fox presenter Chris Wallace told viewers: “If you were not moved by the testimony of Marie Yovanovitch, you don’t have a pulse….”

The BBC wrote: Her “testimony was a scathing rebuke of Giuliani and his work on behalf of the president — a top-to-bottom indictment of what she called a “campaign of disinformation” based on claims that originated with “individuals with questionable motives and with reason to believe that their political and financial ambitions would be stymied by our anti-corruption policy in Ukraine.” She implicitly lambasted Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, too, asserting that the department “is being hollowed out from within at a competitive and complex time on the world stage.”

And that is quite a slamming indictment, not only of Trump, but also Giuliani and Pompeo.

She was born 11 November 1958 in Montreal and is a resourceful and enduring Sun, Jupiter, Venus, Moon and Mercury in Scorpio with her Sun, Venus, Moon being opposition Mars in Taurus square Uranus. She’s formidably strong. Her Mars is conjunct Trump’s midheaven and her Saturn in Sagittarius is conjunct Trump’s Sun Moon and opposition his Sun so she will make him feel criticised and discouraged; as well as being seen by him as a rival. And she could be damaging for his reputation given her Mars is conjunct Algol on his Midheaven.

In the fragmenting chaos of Trump’s administration with constantly churning staff, two things are clear. One is that Giuliani’s relationship with Trump is sagging badly from today onwards as tr Neptune squares the composite Sun for the final time and aims in 2020 to oppose the composite Jupiter, which will take the shine off.

More interesting by far is the Pompeo/Trump relationship with Pompeo at risk of having his reputation for the future badly damaged by his complicit silence in the face of diplomatic staff being attacked. Even Republicans are beginning to rumble in discontent at public servants being treated so badly.

Pompeo’s relationship chart with Trump has an aggravated and teeth-gritted Mars opposition Saturn Venus. That has been jostled this year with tr Uranus conjunct the Venus which has a final exact aspect in the last few days of December to early February 2020, which might just be the trigger for a rupture. If not then, certainly towards May/June 2020 when tr Uranus starts to elbow the Mars opposition Saturn; and even before then in March tr Saturn will add its tuppence worth of woe to their interface.

Pompeo’s personal chart is showing up career losses from today till mid December with tr Neptune conjunct his Jupiter/Saturn midpoint with aggravating setbacks mid December. His Secretary of State chart 26 April 2018 2pm indicates the days over this coming New Year as very high stress – though that could also be world events disrupting his holidays.

Trump’s chart has a few discouraging Saturn blips to midpoints and to his financial Jupiter this month but he’s nowhere near as ring-fenced and infuriated as he’s going to be from late January 2020 onwards.

The first public hearings in the Trump impeachment process in Congress started today at 10.06am. It’s a long process that may end up in front of the Republican-controlled Senate who are likely to vote in favour of the president. But public testimony from diplomats and others indicating that Trump improperly used his office to leverage the Ukraine president for the purpose of digging dirt on a political rival will be damaging and have a knock-on effect for the 2020 election.

The impeachment chart isn’t too inspiring with Mercury retrograde; and over hopeful and muddled 3^rd house Neptune square Jupiter; and the restrictive Saturn Pluto in a frustrating square to Mars.

The lead Republican rottweiler is congressman Jim Jordan, described as ‘less a wrestler and more a bare-knuckle fighter’ who will impugn witnesses and the process itself and will lash out at the president’s enemies. He is so unswervingly loyal that he recently told CNN he had never heard Trump lie. A political commentator said: “The success or failure of these hearings depends on how they play on television and almost more than any other member, Jordan understands that.”

Surprise surprise he was born 17 February 1964, within days of Sarah Palin, shock jock Glenn Beck and former mobster John Gotti Jnr. He has that fearsome, intemperate, inordinately stubborn Sun, Mars, Saturn and Mercury in Aquarius square Neptune.

He’s an odd match with Trump since his unpleasant collection of Aquarius planets oppose Trump’s Mars Ascendant and square Trump’s Midheaven. I suppose it could be seen as Jordan acting as attack dog to defend Trump but it’s highly unstable combination and could go entirely the other way at one point with all that destructive anger pointing in Trump’s direction. Their relationship chart has an illusory, delusional composite Sun opposition Neptune in a can-be-fanatical square to Uranus; with a power-struggling Mars square Pluto. That is also highly unstable.

There’s a distinct enthusiasm-sag coming from November 20 to December 1^st this year both on the relationship chart and on Jordan’s personal chart – though his real distancing from Trump won’t come until February 2020 and beyond for the rest of the year with tr Saturn wading in hard aspect round their composite Sun Neptune square Uranus T Square.

Jordan is certainly running on high octane fuel at the moment with his Solar Arc Jupiter in a super (over?) confident square to his Pluto. He’ll have a few setbacks and jolts over the next few weeks into early 2020 as well as some successes late December and through January. Where he starts to sag is February next year when he steps onto a Neptunian banana skin off and on till the election and after. Plus his Solar Arc Sun and Mars are getting the tr Pluto hard aspect right through till 2021 which will put the brakes on his exuberance more than somewhat.

Jordan’s back-up is Kevin McCarthy, Republican congressman from California who is Minority Speaker, 26 January 1965. He’s another Sun Aquarius with a head-in-the-clouds Jupiter in indulgent Taurus opposition Neptune; and Uranus Pluto plus Mars in Virgo. Aquarius has a misplaced reputation as a tolerant humanitarian – many Aquarians are hard-right ideologues.

His astrology ahead runs along similar lines to Jordan – setbacks and uncertainties, in his case in from November 20 to December 1^st but also extending into mid December; then more success and confidence late December to late January. Late January to late February everything comes apart at the seams and he’s on a Neptunian slide thereafter.

His relationship with Trump looks half relieved and half separated over the New Year and sags throughout 2020.

Sarah Brightman, the world’s best-selling soprano and a superstar of the crossover genre between pop and classical, has given her first concert in the UK for fifteen years to an enraptured audience in the Albert Hall. Best known for Phantom of the Opera and her ‘Time to say Goodbye’ duet with Andrea Bocelli, she has gone from small beginnings in the dance group Hot Gossip through stage musicals to become a world-class recording artist.

Born 14 August 1960 5.45 am London (from memory), she attended a performing arts school as a child and made her stage debut at 13. She appeared in CATS where she met Andrew Lloyd Webber who left his wife and two children for her and she split from her first marriage as well. The Lloyd Webber marriage only lasted six years and was, she later admitted, ‘a difficult time’ but it established her as a major talent.

She has a Sun Uranus in Leo on her Ascendant in a lucky and confident trine to Jupiter in Sagittarius on the cusp of the performing 5^th house, as well as being square a 10^th house Taurus Moon. Taurus is often a sign found in singers’ charts given its rulership of the throat. Her Neptune opposes her Midheaven squaring onto a flamboyant Mercury in Leo. She has a wide-ish Yod of Neptune sextile Saturn inconjunct an ambitious 10^th house Mars in Gemini marking her out as an individual who stands out from the crowd. Plus a tough-minded Saturn in Capricorn in the 5^th trine Pluto Venus in Virgo, sextile Neptune.

She’s definitely a strong personality, with Uranus in aspect to her Sun and Moon in Fixed signs, who won’t be comfortable with compromise or be overly adaptable. Her Saturn in the 5^th gives her organising ability in the entertainment business; and also points to delays or problems having children which she tried to have with her third partner but it didn’t work.

Her marriage to Lloyd Webber was always going to be problematic with his Mars Saturn (Pluto) Moon in Leo sitting on top of her Sun Uranus and square her Moon. Though his Venus and Midheaven in Taurus were conjunct her Moon which would help initially both emotionally and in terms of professional ambition. They are evidently still on friendly terms.

Her creative 5^th and 7^th Harmonics are strong as is her ‘obsessive dream’ 11H.

The US stock market’s meteoric rise stands in sharp contrast to sagging investor confidence in the face of a worsening economic outlook. “There is a disconnect between where the market is going and where the economy is heading,” one analyst said, with the China-USA trade tiff harming US consumers and farmers more than Chinese. A majority of the wealthiest investors are expecting a major sell-off next year with the global economy resting on a knife-edge, according to a recent survey. More than other U.S. presidents, Trump has hitched his success to gains in the stock market and to the health of the U.S. economy.

Stock Market charts aren’t always rock solid indicators but for what they are worth:-

The Dow Jones, 26 May 1896 9.11 am New York, is looking upbeat at the moment with tr Uranus square the Jupiter which repeats in early 2020. There looks to be more cheer in 2021 with Solar Arc Jupiter opposition the Sun and Solar Arc Mars conjunct the Jupiter. Though there are foot-dragging transits to midpoints from early 2020 to 2023.

The New York Stock Exchange, 17 May 1792 New York, is also looking chipper with tr Pluto in a confident square to Jupiter in 2019/2020. Where it starts to look really sticky is in 2021/22/23 with tr Pluto square Saturn and then Neptune. Though there could be hints of that in 2020 from Pluto hard aspects to midpoints.

The FTSE First Trade 3 January 1984 10am London is also indicating 2021/2022 as frustratingly blocked and aggravating years; with some uncertainties through 2020.

The Nasdaq, 8 February 1971 9am New York, has hints of over-confidence from its super-optimistic Jupiter Neptune being triggered by Solar Arcs, with some challenges in 2020. But there’s nothing as catastrophic as the influences around the DotCom bust in 2000 when tr Uranus was conjunct the Nasdaq Sun with tr Saturn in Taurus moving to square the Sun; and much worse tr Pluto conjunct the Mars. There will be ripples of the same effect in 2022/23 when tr Saturn in Aquarius square tr Uranus in Taurus bounce off the Nasdaq Sun square Saturn – but the tr Pluto on the Nasdaq Mars won’t be repeated. So rocky but not as disastrous.

The S & P Index, 4 March 1957, New York, is moving into headwinds through 2020, but the main difficulties seem to be 2021 with Solar Arc Pluto conjunct Neptune and a bubble-bursting tr Neptune square the Sun/Jupiter midpoint. Though there are also confidence boosting influences at the same time. And it is no where near as shattering as when the Lehman collapse and wider crash in 2008 happened. Then tr Saturn in Pisces was conjunct the S&P Sun, tr Neptune was square the Mars, and an overly-confident tr Pluto was square the Jupiter.

1987 Black Monday: A previous market cataclysm on 19 October 1987 – on the NASDAQ the Jupiter Neptune was again being targeted by Solar Arc Saturn opposition the Jupiter Neptune; and tr Saturn Uranus was conjunct the Solar Arc Jupiter Neptune. So again some slight similarities to what is coming up though not as punishing.

On the S&P 500 in 1987 tr Saturn Uranus was opposition the Solar Arc Mars; and moving to square the Jupiter.