A look at the Scorpio New Moon and the US mid-term elections…
As Americans take to the poll to vote on who they want in Congress, it’s time to take the temperature on where America is in relation to the Trump presidency.
As an astrologer, I can’t help noticing that the 2018 US mid-terms are taking place smack bang on top of a number of very significant cosmic events:
- The New Moon in Scorpio (Nov 7)
- The return of a retrograde Uranus to volatile Aries
- AND Jupiter’s imminent ingress back onto home turf, Sagittarius (Nov 8) – a place in the zodiac it hasn’t occupied since the period leading up to the last financial crash in 2006-7.
Astrology was originally designed to help decide matters of state and it is on this larger-than-life stage where it really comes into its own.
We’ve had some really major shifts during 2017 and to many, this election feels like a turning point of some kind – perhaps the point where the pendulum begins to swing the other way?
Given these auspices, I thought it was time to take a look at the New Moon in Scorpio in relation to Trump’s chart to see if it can give us any hints of where the dice may fall at this half-way point since the 2016 US presidential elections.
THE MOON WITH A STING IN ITS TAIL?
Payback Time?
We cannot ignore the fact that Scorpio is all about revenge/vindication, and is synonymous with power and change, thanks to its co-rulership by transformative Pluto.
So, what could it mean for these elections? Well, on a purely symbolic level, it could mean a desire for payback by the people whose voices feel unheard. Hence larger than average turnoust at the poll. In mundane astrology, the Moon rules the people, while the Sun signifies leadership. Trump has Leo rising, so is very much associated with solar energy. So far, so good.
It is interesting to me, given this link between Scorpio and retribution, that the Part of Treachery is currently rising in Trump’s chart, both of which signify that he has made a lot of enemies and this has the potential to come back and bite him.
Rise of the Maverick Candidate
Added to this is Mars in Aquarius, which is currently opposing his natal Mars in the 12th and coming up to make contact with his place of sworn enemies from the 6th house. So opposition may be growing from within the political establishment, especially from those who consider themselves to be idealistic warriors (Mars in Aquarius)! And we do see strong evidence in this from the many maverick candidates who have stood for office during these mid-terms. As a recent Sky news article remarks:
For the first time, the majority of the Democratic Party’s nominees are not white men. Women, minority, LGBTQ and first-time candidates have won the primaries in record-breaking numbers. Traditional safe-seat “insider” Republicans are being pushed to the fringes of Trump’s party.
Why now? Trump’s 2016 win galvanised the country. Voters on both sides now want more authentic, less polished and non-establishment candidates. Organised and funded activism, from the Women’s March, #MeToo, Black Lives Matter and March for Our Lives, has provided energised bases for candidates to draw on.
America has also undergone profound demographic change and it now has the most ethnically diverse electorate in its history. Voters are choosing to elect candidates who look like them.
But is there enough of them to really shake things up?
Firebrands = Fireworks
On this score, I find it fascinating that, for the first time since May 2018, Uranus has re-entered Aries for four months. The last 7 years have shown us what this particular blend of planetary energy produces – mavericks and firebrands who are not afraid to use unconventional, even dirty/violent methods, to get what they want.
Anger is what motivates these people – and we have seen a lot of anger in America in the last two years, both from the left and right. So during the period that Uranus remains in Aries, I do think we can expect a spike in violence and hate crimes – something to be vigilant of.
Impeachment?
The ruler of Mars in Aquarius, Uranus is currently occupying Trump’s 9th house of foreign connections (Russia, anyone?), as well as his beliefs/ethics and lawsuits. A sign of pending impeachment? Possibly. Mars is trine Uranus, so there is the potential for his opponents to get him out via legal means. Plus the Part of Treachery is located here, where it makes a sextile to Trump’s Saturn in Cancer, which tells me that there coudl be more support for impeachment from older senators and from awareness campaigns aimed at younger kids and driven by Hollywood/creative people.
BUT, will the Deomcrats get enough seats to create momentum and is there an appetite for this? The short answer is: No.
The reason I say this is the trine between transiting Venus and Trump’s Part of Fortune in the 6th, which suggests that he is likely to have sweet-talked a lot of colleagues into continuing to support him. And, as we know, seduction will often (excuse the figure of speech) trump agitation every time. Most people are lazy and so take the easy way out. Trump knows this and plays upon it. Also, the Moon is in Scorpio and Mars is in Aquarius – these signs are square to each other, which says to me that the average voter in America may not be ready to vote in candidates that are too progressive.
What’s more, as I pointed out in my New Moon forecast, this Scorpio New Moon may have less of a sting in its tail than usual due to a trine between the luminaries and Neptune. While it could point to a surge in idealism amongst the populace and a desire to return to conviction politicsI think it may likely suggests the complete opposite: that once again, he is going to dodge a bullet through sleight of hand. “Fake News” anyone?
Neptune – Lies, Smoke and Mirrors
If anything, this Neptune, which is located in Trump’s 7th, then his friends and associates have the ability to subtly reinforce his position – Neptune is making a trine to the Part of Danger, so he will probably slip the noose through a mixture of lies and corruption.
Of course, this could also point to smoke and mirrors on his part – he could use this to lie away and weave more illusions and make more empty promises to his cohorts: Neptune rules his 8th house of taxes and joint enterprises, so no doubt he is still busy raping and pillaging behidn the scenes, enriching himself for when he leaves office. So, like the cat with nine lives, it looks as though he will avert any immediate danger from his opponents.
After all, the 1% who funded his campaigns and continue to back him through the Republican party, are still expecting more tax cuts and other financial sweeteners if they are loyal. We see this reflected in a hulking great kite connecting Trump’s Sun (=power) to transiting Venus (which rules his Midheaven = seat in office), to his Part of Fortune in the 6th (sway with colleagues) and his natal Mars in the 12th (backroom dirty dealing).
In addition, although the luminaries are in Scorpio, they are travelling together: New Moons always happen at conjunctions of the Sun and Moon. To me, this suggests that he still has the support of middle America, the ‘silent majority’ of middle class voters who may not be as vocal as political campaigners and picketers, but still actually come out in their droves to cast their ballot. And they often aren’t interested in principles – pragmatism may be what it is all about for them.
Furthermore, Neptune is very good at playing the victim, and god knows how often we have heard Trump complaining that the investigation into Russian collusion as a witchunt, which his supporters fully agree with.
And let’s not forget that maverick Uranus applies to both sides of the divide – right-wing fascists as well as placard toting lefties. In Trump’s chart, this retrograde revolutionary will make two favourable aspects to his Ascendant and to his Part of Fortune in the 6th house. This tells me that he has some tricks up his sleeve and may come out with more support from the Republicans than may be expected. *** News flash!*** I wonder if the tech problems (ruled by Uranus mainly) and voting machine failures are going to be part fo the problem? Sabotage? Or just infrastructure failure?
Overall Judgement.
With the New Moon trining Neptune, I do think that some of the new generation Democratic candidates will get elected, but it won’t be any sort of seismic event, as it was with Obama’s ‘Yes we can’ campaign.
Furthermore, although his support base may be shrinking ever so slightly many middle Americans may not be ready to vote ‘alternative’ candidates into office.
And although it looks as though there is the evidence to impeach him at some point (hinted at by the Part of Treachery), it seems unlikely that there will be the political will to do so.
So in essence then, my feeling is that the Democrats will gain more support than some might have thought, but it will probably be Trump who will come out swinging, as the Americans like to say.
However, his gloating isn’t likely to last for long, because, as usual, there one last sting in this tale…
2020: OMINOUS RUMBLINGS
While things may look fairly rosy for Trump in the short term, I can see come potential clouds looming for him, both personally and professionally. These come in the form of:
- Transiting Mercury which is conjunct Trump’s natal Part of Treachery in the 3rd house of communication/self-expression/the media. This Part sits on 13th degree of Sagittarius, and the Sabian symbol for this degree is all about the past catching up with you. So a scandal arising from his private life, possibly a recording or video of something he said, could come back to the haunt him. A leak from the Whitehouse or from within the Trump camp? It’s happened before, there’s no reason it couldn’t again…
- In addition, the New Moon Part of Treachery is rising on Trump’s Ascendant, near to power star Regulus. Could somebody on the inside be about to betray him?
- Adding to the mix is that Mars in Aquarius, which is opposing planets in Trump’s 12th house of secrets. Mars rules his natal 8th house, so as I said back in 2016, I still think this is likely to be about a tax/sex scandal or dubious business partnerships. We haven’t yet heard the report from the committee looking into Russian hacking and collusion with the Trump campaign yet, have we? So watch this space!
JUPITER INTO SAGITTARIUS – THE ECONOMY
The other thing we haven’t really looked at is the ingress of Jupiter into Sagittarius on Nov the 8th – just the after the New Moon. Given that Jupiter’s transit through the sign of the archer also means that it will cross over the Ascendant of the US Sibley chart, it seems to me that the economy plays a significant role in whether or not Trump gets a second term or not.
Now, although generally considered a very positive thing, this combination can generate a LOT of enthusiasm and optimism. And we saw how that played out in 2006-7 when the bubble of mad speculation and financial gambling grew so large that it eventually had to burst, as it did in 2008.
In financial astrology, Jupiter is associated with boom, and Saturn, with bust. So it’s ingress into Sagittarius could signify a temporary boom in America’s economy – or at least a sense of optimism amonst the American people, which could, in turn, help to keep him in power. Transiting Jupiter is making a square to that idealistic and subversive Neptune we discussed earlier, and we all know how subtly corrosive money and big promises (however dodgy) can be in politics. Furthermore, his promises to revive the fortunes of the rust belt should not be ignored – they bring hope to thousands of workers who’ve been affected by globalisation – and they are likely to repay him with Republican votes. These are also very much in keeping with the illusory but tempting promises of wealth we saw during the height of the debt bubble. History could very much repeat itself now.
However, if Jupiter is left unchecked, it can lead to inflation – quite literally! Rising living costs and growing debt, (debt in developing countries and within the consumer credit market), I think still has the potential to be the undoing of the global financial system again, as economists like Anne Pettifor are warning.
Writing in the Economist’s September issue, she reminds us:
Assuming it avoids an accidental debt default, America will run a bigger budget deficit this year than the last, despite a booming economy.
So all is not well in the state of Denmark, as Shakespeare wrote in Hamlet. And, as we saw in 2010, money ultimately talks when it comes to elections and the rise and fall of governments – and presidents. So although there might be a scandal that ends up seeing Trump impeached between now and 2020 (look at that mercury on the Ascendant), I think it might get buried or forgotten about if things appear to pick up economically.
So, like an insurance policy for a rainy day, it does have the potential to unseat him, but will only be used as a weapon by his current ‘friends’, who aren’t terribly particular when it comes to their scruples, if he doesn’t give them what they want, which is financial deregulation (and we all know what happened the last time the rules were relaxed post 2000!)
So if anything has the potential to stop Trump in his tracks, it is the American economy. If it crashes again once Jupiter leaves Sagittarius in 2019 and enters the financial sector of the US Sibley chart (as it will just before November 2020), then this could well prove to be his undoing. In which case, he can forget a second term.
So, short terms gains but long-term pains is my verdict. The tide is turning, people. especially if we consider the degree of this New Moon and how it is associated with the dawn which follows a period of darkness – the end of the Via Combusta.
Watch this space!
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