On November 6th 2012 the future of America will be decided by the clash of Democrats and Republicans, as Barak Obama seeks to stave off the challenge of Republican candidate Mitt Romney. At the time of writing the population of the USA is evenly split. Republicans are determined to reverse the health care legislation that was the crowning achievement of Obama’s first presidential period, claiming that forcing people to buy health insurance is just another tax. In a country historically suspicious of government interference, the view amongst Republicans is that people should be free to choose.
Mitt Romney is not part of the 1% of the richest Americans; he is part of the 0.01 percent – a billionaire who proposes to lower taxes on the rich and superrich, because they are the people who create jobs in America. Reducing taxes for them (and himself) will benefit every American according to the trickle-down theory of economics. Still, it has been documented that money has not trickled down since the Reagan period in the 1980’s and that in fact the middle class has got somewhat poorer, whilst the rich section of the population has got immeasurably richer. (Note 1) Trickle down is a great theory, and if I was rich, I would definitely be supporting it.
Americans do not have hang-ups about being rich, because they dream of being rich themselves one day. American society prides itself on being extremely mobile, though recent studies show that this mobility has decreased to such a degree, that European countries are now more mobile, in terms of poorer people entering the middle class, and middles class people becoming rich. (Note 2) Someone has stolen the American dream over the last four decades.
Mitt Romney has run in to his fair share of troubles, from the infamous journey when he in 1983 traveled 1000 km with his dog Seamus in a carrier on the roof of the family car (Note 3) to the time at school when he personally forcibly cut off the hair of a younger student who had long blond hair and was presumed to be gay. (Note 4) Some people maintain therefore, that there is a callous streak in Romney, which would not be appropriate for a president. Actually the horoscope for Romney is unusually watery, and as such you would expect there to be a strong element of compassion.
Mitt Romney
Mitt Romney 12th March 1947 9.42 (Rectified) Detroit. AS 28.13 TA (Note 5)
I have taken the liberty of rectifying the birth time from 9.51 to 9.42. Rectification is a dangerous procedure and can lead to a lot of confusion, but my reasons are as follows. Firstly the uncorrected Ascendant is 1.01 Gemini, which means that if he was born just three minutes earlier, Taurus would be rising. Secondly Romney is associated with investment capital – particularly Bain Capital – and this is a Taurus matter. Thirdly it is more likely that this is a Venus ruled horoscope with Venus in the 10th house of career, than a Mercury-ruled horoscope with Mercury in fall and retrograde in Pisces and the 11th. My rectification places the Moon in virtually the same minute of arc as Jupiter, and in an almost exact conjunction with the Descendant, which shows some very powerful (and secretive) partners.
For those who would like to check out the rectification (Note 6) more, then I used the following events. In June 1968 he was driving a car in France which was involved in a head-on collision which killed a fellow passenger and almost killed him. Probably his natal Sun/Uranus square was activated here, and Ascendant progressed was 21.28 Gemini (square natal sun). When Romney started his career at Bain in 1978 his MC progressed was at 6 Pisces conjoining Mars and when Romney set himself up as head of the offshoot company Bain Capital in 1994, his Ascendant progressed was 6 Cancer trine Mars. When he became governor of Massachusetts in January 2003 his Ascendant progressed was 21.27 Cancer trine his sun, and MC progressed was 2.04 Aries trine Saturn.
With the sun in Pisces trine the Moon/Jupiter conjunction in Scorpio, Romney must in fact be a deeply emotional man and a very religious man too. To his friends and partners he is probably seen as deep, sensitive and very supportive. It is the Venus in Aquarius, opposing the Saturn/Pluto conjunction which gives him the image of being cold, and sometimes cruel. His weak point is obviously this opposition, which the Democrats keep hammering at… not least regarding his own comments – “I like being able to fire people who provide services to me” – “Corporations are people, my friend… of course they are. “ – “I’m not concerned about the very poor. We have a safety net there.” “[My wife] drives a couple of Cadillacs.” Obviously that Mercury in Pisces in square to Uranus is making a few slips too.
Against Romney, who has Mercury and the moon weakly placed, along with Saturn in detriment, Obama obviously has a stronger horoscope with Sun and Saturn strongly placed in their own signs. Obama is a team player with a strong tendency to get involved in detail and to micromanage, as reflected by the Mars in Virgo trine Saturn. Whilst Romney is perceived as cold, Obama is perceived as arrogant (that Leo sun) and distant – Aquarius rising. Obama is also obviously very cerebral, with a powerful Mercury/Jupiter opposition.
When Obama won the 2008 election, the issues were clear, and powerful reflected by the exact and rare opposition between Saturn and Uranus on election day – should the electorate choose renewal and hope, or opt for the fatherly experience of John McCain? The coming election on November 6th 2012 does not have such clear-cut issues, but Saturn will have entered Scorpio and Neptune is of course now in Pisces, which are curiously the very two signs where Romney has his moon and sun. The Saturn/Neptune trine will connect in October 2012, June 2013 and July 2013, and generally this is a very socially aware combination, determined to enact legislation to help the underprivileged. But perhaps too, Saturn in Scorpio represents the secrecy and power of the banking world, and as Saturn also sextiles Pluto, it is not difficult to imagine that the banks will continue to do everything in their power to protect their position. These influences may favor Romney.
On election day the moon will be in Leo, crossing Obama’s sun and ending the day in trine to Jupiter in Gemini. Transit Jupiter actually conjoined Obama’s moon in June 2012, and at the January 2013 inauguration, it will station close to his moon and exact square to Pluto. This probably favors Obama, as the inauguration chart really connects with his chart. (Note 7) Obviously Neptune in Pisces will be squaring Obama’s moon in the whole period from June 2012 to the beginning of 2014, which may reflect a profound discontent amongst the people and perhaps also helplessness in doing anything to remedy their suffering.
During Obama’s administration his progressed sun has been trine first progressed and then radix Jupiter, which was a good indication of his winning ability at the time. At the same time Mars progressed has been squaring first his progressed Saturn and in 2011-2012 his radix Saturn, which indicates just how much of an uphill struggle it has been. His Ascendant progressed will square Saturn over the next three years, so if he wins, times will be hard. Apart from Neptune to his Moon, there are no major transits to his chart, which could indicate that he is not going anywhere, but will stay put at the White House.
In Romney’s (rectified) chart his Mercury progressed is opposition to his Moon/Jupiter conjunction (and may be about to conjoin his Ascendant). This may reflect the pressure on him to show transparency about financial secrets – he still refuses to show pre-2010 tax returns. The speculation is that he paid no tax because of write-offs through losses in the financial crash. In 2010 he paid 14% in tax. At the time Romney announced his candidature, his MC progressed was trine Pluto, which was excellent for beating the competition, and his Ascendant progressed was trine the Moon/Jupiter conjunction. His sun progressed conjoins Algol at the time of the election. In three years’ time the sun progressed will conjoin his Ascendant and Ascendant progressed will conjoin Saturn, which may indicate that if he loses the election this time, he will try again in 2016.
Neither horoscope shows a convincing winner, and my guess is that Obama will win unconvincingly, but I would not bet my life savings on it. His chart resonates with the US chart. He has Mars on US Mars, and he has performed powerfully in the military department, with his hit on Osama bin Laden, the withdrawal from Iraq and the coming withdrawal from Afghanistan. In 2006-2007 the USA reached the pinnacle of its military might, and it was at this time that Mars in the US chart turned retrograde by progression, which is a historic turnaround where USA draws forces back home. Mars will be retrograde until 2086, when it will go direct on the US Midheaven at 0 Libra. (It conjoined this point in 1940 at the start of World War II).
Obama’s Venus also conjoins the US Venus, which means the economic crisis has been his crisis. And his South Node is exactly on the US moon at 27 Aquarius. Romney has his Moon/Jupiter sextile US Pluto and square US Moon, Mercury trine US Sun, and his sun is opposite US Neptune and square Mars. It is not a very convincing – or beneficial – match.
But this is not a harmonious time for the USA. Its progressed sun is exactly square natal Uranus in Gemini from 2011-2013 which shows a destabilized nation and presidency, vulnerable to unprecedented and unpredictable change. (Note 8) With Uranus and Pluto powerfully activating the US Sun/Saturn square during the next presidential period, this is a double Uranus influence on the Sun, which will lead to a powerful polarization between congress and president, and perhaps major disruptive events on an international level. Yet Uranus and Pluto often evoke panic, when the facts on the ground are not as bad as they seem. As Saturn enters Scorpio it will conjoin the US progressed Saturn, which currently is exactly trine US Venus, and this indicates long-term economic restructuring, which may be hard but is also healthy. Neptune is also transiting in trine to US Venus, which does not promise much economic respite, but it does suggest a kindness and charity, which is a strong characteristic of the nation.
Adrian Ross Duncan 18th July 2012
1. See for example Paul Krugman – a Nobel prize winner for economics – here, for example:
https://krugman.blogs.nytimes.com/
2. Paul Krugman quotes Alan Krueger, the chairman of the Council of Economic Advisers who shows:
“… America is both especially unequal and has especially low mobility [in relation to other industrialized countries].” Krueger also argues that because Americans are even more unequal now than they were a generation ago, they should expect even less social mobility going forward.
https://krugman.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/01/15/the-great-gatsby-curve/
3. The dog became sick during the course of the journey. See:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mitt_Romney_dog_incident
4.Fellow student Friedemann saw Romney march ahead of a prep school posse shouting about their plan to cut Lauber’s hair. Friedemann followed them to a nearby room where they came upon Lauber, tackled him and pinned him to the ground. As Lauber, his eyes filling with tears, screamed for help, Romney repeatedly clipped his hair with a pair of scissors.
5. Frances McEvoy quotes him for a time of 9.51. On June 24, 2007 the Boston Globe ran a feature article quoting his father for 10 am.
6. Progression method is traditional – Naibod in Right Ascension. The events were found on the AstroWiki section of www.astro.com
7. The inauguration takes place at a private ceremony on Sunday 20th at 12 noon, and a public ceremony on the 21st at 12 noon, in Washington. The horoscope for this event has a Moon/Jupiter conjunction trine Sun/Mercury in Aquarius… a very happy and popular event.
8. The US progressed sun in Pisces squaring Uranus in Gemini exactly replicates Mitt Romney’s Sun/Uranus square, and this could be a factor which is favorable for him in the election. If he wins, this resonance will have been the key factor.
9. This article is the subject of a talk to be given at the Astrological Association of Great Britain conference in September 2012:
Will Obama get re-elected, and will the USA be governable? The answers are yes and no. America is at a turning point militarily, socially and politically. This talk explores how to survive the next presidential period. Fortunately the agenda is not just being set by Uranus square Pluto…