Astrology of Today’s News

Trump now has his Progressed Moon moving into his 12^th for two years and a confidant described him as a lost man: “He now lives within himself, which is a dangerous place for Donald Trump to be. I see him emotionally withdrawing. He’s gained weight. He doesn’t have anybody whom he trusts.” Which is fairly much a perfect description of that influence.

His ‘grown-up’ ministers spend their time patching up his wild statements, often contradicting what he’s said, for example on NATO, and wincing when he makes legal woes over his travel ban worse by giving hostages to fortune in inflammatory tweets about the recent London attack. And he’s now lashing out at Attorney General Jeff Sessions for not getting him what he wants.

His relationship with HR McMaster, who dented his previously stellar reputation by defending Trump’s over intelligence sharing with Russia, looks completely frustrated and aggravated at the moment with his boss, with tr Pluto opposition the composite Mars from early June through till mid July, and returning on an off till late 2018.

Jeff Sessions, Steve Mnuchin (Treasury Secy), Don McGahn (WH counsel) and Kellyanne Conway all have separating Saturn transits to their Trump relationship charts through till late 2017. As do the military chiefs – Mattis, Dunford, Kelly.

Even die-hard supporters like Stephen Miller and Gary Cohn look unnerved and jolted by strong tr Uranus hard aspects to their composite Suns.

Where problems may escalate is mid July to early September this year with tr Pluto square Trump’s Jupiter, which is likely to send him into an over forceful, might-makes-right push. And that returns in November. VP Mike Pence, Gary Cohn and Chief of Staff Dunford, look especially alarmed and confused in their interactions with him then.

Conflict and interpersonal difficulties are to be expected in the hothouse of the White House. But this one seems to beat all previous records.

Add on: Trump’s extraordinary twitter attack on Sadiq Khan, the London Mayor, is turning into a toxic ping pong match with Khan now saying he shouldn’t be invited to the UK.

Khan, born 8 October 1970, is a Sun Uranus in Libra; with a fearsomely determined Saturn in Taurus trine Mars Pluto in Virgo, and opposition Venus Neptune in Scorpio. Khan’s Saturn is conjunct Trump’s MC, so he could teach him to be more sensible and better organised but here Saturn’s critical, put-down side appears to be taking precedence. Plus Khan’s Mars Pluto squares Trump’s Sun and Moon; and Khan’s Neptune squares Trump’s Mars Ascendant – the first is bitterly hostile and the second not mutually supportive. Their relationship chart has similar patterns with a composite outright-dislike on both sides Pluto Mars conjunction bringing a determined and destructive power struggle ; with a differing-agendas composite Sun Uranus. And a chilly composite Venus square Saturn which is getting the deep freeze treatment this year from tr Saturn hard aspects.

The State visit won’t be Khan’s decision but with feelings running high I can’t imagine even the lure of HMQ and a gilded carriage ride down the Mall would be too attractive to Trump, given the reception he’s likely to get. Rex Tillerson got the bird pretty constantly on a recent visit to NZ and he’s not the kingpin.

“He was a great role model, a great husband, a great entertainer . . . America’s dad. A giant. A legend.”

And now Bill Cosby goes on trial for three sexual assault charges relating to one woman. Though those are the tip of the iceberg. Dozens of women have been brave enough to come forward and speak about what they say happened to them, with allegations of drugging and rape. The lawyer Gloria Allred “It’s not a ‘he said, she said’ situation any more. It’s a ‘he said, she said, she said, she said, she said, she said, she said . . .’ ”

Born 12 July 1937 12.30am Philadelphia, PA, he has a 4^th house Cancer Sun, which is the ego-centric driving planet of a Kite, in opposition to a lucky, pillar-of-the-community 10^th house Jupiter in an Earth Grand Trine to Neptune (Moon) in Virgo trine Uranus in Taurus. So very earthy and confident, pushily so with his Jupiter also opposition Pluto. Plus he has Mars in intense Scorpio, which has a tendency to dominate and hold grudges – it’s in a no-compromise opposition to Uranus.

He’s got tr Pluto moving through his 10^th for many years ahead, deconstructing his reputation and career, and now opposition his Sun, which it continues to hard aspect till late 2018. So a time of considerable pressure; and this month he has tr Saturn square his Mars/Pluto through this trial, which will put him on the back foot; plus an undermining tr Pluto square his Mars/Neptune (also till late 2018). His lucky Jupiter has always fished him (or kept him) out of trouble up till now and may come back into play in 2019/2020. Though his health may be sagging with tr Pluto trine his 6^th house Neptune this year.

His self-undoing 10^th Harmonic, throws high and brings low, is strong joining Venus Pluto and the Sun, which makes sense of sexual coercion.

There’s been violence at an “alt-right” rally in Portland, Oregon with police using stun grenades and tear gas. Tensions have been high since Jeremy Christian, a white supremacist, was charged for the killing of two men and wounding a third after they intervened to help two young women on a train who were the target of racial abuse. In court, Christian shouted: “You call it terrorism, I call it patriotism!”

Born 1 May 1982, he’s a Sun Taurus opposition Jupiter in Scorpio, so not lacking in stubbornness or confidence. His Mars in Libra opposes Venus in Pisces squaring onto Neptune in Sagittarius, so he channels all the passionate although insensitive enthusiasm of Mars Venus into delusional Neptune. Plus he has a wide-ish Yod of Mercury sextile Venus inconjunct Pluto, so has problems exercising his willpower. It makes him coercive, giving him an extreme perspective and an inability to interact with or understand others.

The white nationalists were given heart by Trump’s campaigning. Matthew Heimbach, leader of one of the myriad far-right (neo-Nazi/KKK and other) groups described Trump as the “gateway drug” to outright white nationalism. “He’s not one of us and everyone needs to know that. But he’s definitely opening up political space for people like ourselves.” Heimbach is a Holocaust denier, believing that it’s all a “Bolshevik conspiracy”. He has expressed sympathy for the racist killer Dylann Roof and praised white supremacist Norwegian mass murderer Anders Breivik. Real Christianity, he said, is “patriarchal, homophobic, racist and anti-semitic. I see that as a good thing.”

Heimbach, 8 April 1991, is a Sun Aries square the can-be-fanatical Uranus Neptune conjunction in Capricorn. With an unstable Jupiter opposition Saturn square Mercury in Aries; and an emotionally intense Venus in Taurus opposition Pluto. His Sun is conjunct his Mars/Saturn midpoint; his Mercury = Mars/Pluto; and his almost unaspected Mars in excitable Cancer is sesqui-square (135 degrees) to Mars.

His compatriot Thomas Buhls, 6 June 1983, is a Sun Mars in Gemini opposition Uranus Jupiter in Sagittarius, so explosive, rebellious; with his Mercury square his Mars/Pluto and Mars/Saturn midpoints – suffused with anger and rage. And his Mars = Saturn/Pluto; his Pluto = Mars/Uranus. All in all a powderkeg.

Another UK terrorist atrocity killed seven and wounded at least 48 others in a van and knife attack close to London Bridge restaurants and market at 10pm last night. All three terrorists, wearing hoax suicide vests and shouting ‘This is for Allah’, were killed by police.

The chart is remarkably similar to the Manchester bombing on 22 May which left 23 dead and 116 injured. The attention-demanding Fire Grand Trine of Saturn in Sagittarius trine Leo Node trine Uranus Venus in Aries is still in place, with the assassination-prone Mars opposition Saturn funnelling all the unshakeable-self-belief of the Fire trine energy into a deadly Mars-led attack. That falls across the Ascendant/Descendant with Mars in the 7^th in both cases – so anger towards others very prominent.

The February Pisces Solar Eclipse, so relevant for Manchester with the explosive Mars Uranus in Aries on the MC, is the same for London. Houses aren’t supposed to matter for Eclipse charts, but my impression is that a strong 8^th house emphasis is present in many disaster Eclipse charts. In this case the Pisces New Moon Neptune are in the 8^th – with Pisces being an ISIS/fundamentalist Islam signature.

The Solar Arc MC on the UK 1801 chart is certainly making its mark as it approaches a square to the deeply buried 8^th house Mars in Taurus, exact in 2 months, though usually acting out ahead of time. That UK Mars in Taurus has in the past been connected to many large-scale death experiences in the UK when it is triggered by transits or progressions. The Solar Arc Mars is also being undermined by tr Neptune in square exactly now, and off and on through 2018 as well.

For all Trump’s opportunistic, knee-jerk tweet about it justifying his travel ban for Muslim immigrants, these will probably turn out to be home-grown.

Kathy Griffin, the controversial stand-up comedian and television presenter, is watching her career disintegrate in front of her eyes after a stunt with a severed head of Donald Trump. Several comedians, including Jim Carrey, have stepped up to support her, saying comedians sometimes step across the line, but she’s had gigs cancelled and sponsorship withdrawn. Her supporters point out that “Obama’s presidency was marked by effigies of our first black president hanging from nooses across the country … or being burned around the world.” Sauce for the goose and all that. Those that give it can rarely take it.

Griffin was born 4 November 1960 6am Oak Park, Illinois (astrotheme), the youngest of six to older Irish immigrant parents, had a paedophile, drug-addicted, abusive brother and suffered from an eating disorder. Not a great childhood.

She is a Sun Mercury Neptune in Scorpio so undoubtedly intense; with her Scorpio planets trine an excitable Mars in Cancer. Her Mars in the 9^th is also opposition Saturn in Capricorn, so she’ll be hard-edged, prone to overstatement, bubbling with anger. She’ll certainly be talented with a Half Grand Sextile off that opposition, of Mars sextile Node Pluto sextile Neptune Sun sextile Saturn – but a happy lady at heart she is not.

Her Uranus is in her 10^th like Jim Carrey as is her Pluto. Her Uranus is conjunct Trump’s Mars, so a recipe for fireworks. She’ll perk up marginally from late this month with a lucky-break tr Uranus opposition her Jupiter/Uranus; but she’s in a generally low-profile, less successful phase with undermining Neptune transits running till late 2018.

Like Carrey, her 7^th Harmonic, which can be mentally on the edge as well as creative is ferociously strong; as is her victim 12H; and she has a strained and aggravated 13H (= breaking with the orthodox).

Much is being made of Leo Varadkar about to become the youngest ever Prime Minister of Ireland after he was voted leader of the country’s main governing centre-right party. He is son of an Indian immigrant doctor and came out as gay in 2015. One commentator said: ’ He has come to personify the liberalisation of a country which was once regarded as one of Europe’s most socially conservative nations – homosexuality was illegal until 1993.’

Born 18 January 1979, with a doctor father and an Irish nurse mother, he took a medical training, became a General Practitioner and went into politics in his mid-twenties.

He’s an ambitious Sun Mars in Capricorn in a determined square to Pluto; with a hard-working Saturn and Moon in Virgo. It won’t all be easy ahead for him with tr Uranus square his Sun Mars into 2018, and tr Neptune opposition his Saturn now until late 2018.

And for all the talk of a liberal Ireland, neither the 1922 nor the 1949 Ireland charts look entirely enamoured.

100 businesses, 80 university presidents, three governors and 30 mayors have so far announced their intention to stick with the Paris climate program, with former New York City mayor Michael Bloomberg leading the charge. He said after speaking to Emmanuel Macron that “The American government may have pulled out of the agreement, but the American people remain committed to it.” California’s governor Jerry Brown has flown to China to talk about co-ordinating new green technologies being produced by Chinese manufacturers to the state’s strict environmental standards. “California will resist,” he said and he has been joined by New York governor Andrew Cuomo vowing to stick to the Paris commitments regardless of moves by the Trump administration.

For every action, there’s a reaction and the blowback on this looks likely to be considerable.

Mike Bloomberg, 14 Feb 1942 3.40pm Brighton, Mass, has a very fixed and enduring chart, with a New Moon in Aquarius in the 8^th and Mercury Venus also in Aquarius; plus a megaton collection of Mars Saturn Uranus in Taurus in his 10^th; plus Pluto in Leo in his 1^st. Not a man for turning or tangling with.

His Mars Saturn Uranus are all sitting on top of Trump’s Midheaven, so he could inflict a deal of damage and change the course of his career. Bloomberg’s Sun opposes Trump’s Mars, so a definite clash.

Bloomberg does look frustrated and in the mood for a fight with tr Pluto trine his 10^th house Mars in 2017/18; though there’ll be setbacks along the way and the struggle won’t get easier with tr Pluto trine his Mars/Saturn midpoint in 2018/19; and then trine his Saturn. But he’s custom built for tough times and won’t easily be pushed off track.

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Margaret Court, the Australian 24-time grand slam singles tennis champion turned Christian pastor, has been causing upset with her comments on gay marriage, homosexuality and transgender people. She said she would not fly on Qantas “where possible” in protest at its support of same-sex marriage; and then told a Christian radio station “tennis is full of lesbians”. Martina Navratilova, 18 times Grand Slam champion, retaliated by calling for the Margaret Court Arena (an Australian Open stadium) to be renamed. Margaret Court now says there is a “conspiracy” from the “US gay lobby” against her.

Born 16 July 1942, Court is a Sun Cancer with Mars in flamboyant Leo probably conjunct her Moon – so plenty of mother/female issues tucked in there. Her Mercury (communication planet) is conjunct her bleak Saturn/Pluto and Uranus/Pluto midpoints making her rather negative and contrary. Tr Pluto has been opposing her Mercury/Pluto midpoint which will make her overly intense in her comments and quite fearful.

There’s certainly no love lost with Navratilova, with a composite Sun Saturn square Mars (= outright dislike) in their relationship chart; with a struggle for the upper hand composite Jupiter Pluto.

Court’s fairly autocratic Saturn Uranus opposes Navratilova’s Saturn; with MC’s Saturn square MN’s Mars; and MC’s Pluto is conjunct MN’s Uranus. So wildly different agendas.

There’s no arguing with holy rollers. No one is listening to them – best just let them burble quietly to themselves on the sidelines.

Where has Theresa May’s Jupiter gone, which should have picked up by now? Completely squashed out by her tr Pluto square her Sun/Neptune midpoint, which Ebertin describes as a ‘tragic deception or illusion’, acute sensitivity, emotional or physical suffering. She’s hurtling ever downwards in polls, popularity and stability ratings. Not that polls have been much right in recent years but still. I’m no fan of hers, but I do get nervy when the astrology seems off track.

Her campaign strategist Lynton Crosby, 23 August 1956, Australia, has nothing but negatives showing on his chart (without birth time) – tr Saturn square his Mercury; Solar Arc Pluto conjunct his Neptune, and Solar Arc Mercury conjunct his Saturn – and his Solar Return from August 2016 for a year is horrible with Mars Saturn square Neptune opposition Node.

Amber Rudd, the Home Secretary, 1 August 1963, was shunted onto the televised debate two days after her father died since May refused to attend. She does have tr Pluto square her Jupiter in Aries through 2017/18 so definitely bullish and confident, though it’s not around over the election; and she has some distinctly discouraging transits to midpoints; with one minor up from a Jupiter trine her Sun/Jupiter.

David Davis, the Brexit negotiator, 23 Dec 1948, does have tr Uranus opposition his Jupiter/Pluto now which will give him luck – though facing a grim time thereafter for two to three years.

John McDonnell, the Labour Deputy, has tr Neptune opposition his Virgo Sun now which usually isn’t good news for wins; and possibly tr Pluto square his Neptune which is ditto.

Diane Abbott, Shadow Home Secy, who’s had a series of car-crash media interviews, is also not sitting too prettily with an agitated tr Uranus opposition her Saturn and tr Neptune opposition her Sun/Pluto.

Nicola Sturgeon, Scottish First Minister, who is also down in poll popularity, looks challenged with her Solar Arc Mercury conjunct her Pluto and tr Saturn square both; though she’ll get a lift from tr Uranus opposition her Jupiter and tr Pluto trine her Mercury/Jupiter so it may not be quite as bad as she fears in private.

So the usual mix and muddle of influences.