Saturn, Neptune, and U.S. Presidential Candidates

 

The following article shows how Saturn and Neptune are integral planets in modern politics. Saturn and Neptune feature strongly in the horoscopes of a number of prospective presidential candidates in the 2008 U.S. election.

 

Reprinted with permission from NCGR Memberletter, October-November 2005

 

A good politician needs a good Neptune, especially when it connects with Saturn, the planet of control, law, and government. In fact, Saturn and Neptune form powerful aspects with each other in the horoscopes of many prominent modern politicians.

 

Saturn, which represents administrative and legislative government—the “formal side of the state”¹—is the ruling planet of Capricorn and the traditional ruler of Aquarius. Capricorn is associated with leadership, ambition, and control, while Aquarius relates to larger social issues, the public domain, political alliances, and that necessity of modern political imagery—the airwaves.²

 

Neptune and Modern Politics

 

Neptune, in its most positive expression, is the planet of visionary ideals. On the other hand, it is also the planet of images, behind-the-scenes manipulation, deception, and putting a smooth gloss on things. Neptune is often associated with acting and movies and, in the modern world of media-driven elections and celebrity culture, telegenic Neptune has assumed ever more importance in a politician’s horoscope. The bigger the election campaign—filled with ads, glossy images, and manipulation of public opinion—the greater the importance of Neptune.

 

It is no accident that California has twice elected actors as governors, one of whom went on to become President. Both Arnold Schwarzenegger and Ronald Reagan have strong Neptune placements in their horoscopes. California Governor Schwarzenegger’s 3^rd house Neptune squares his chart ruling Moon and sextiles his Sun—both luminaries are glossed with Neptune’s glistening, body-building dream tan glow. President Ronald Reagan’s Neptune opposed his Mercury. The strong involvement of Neptune in these horoscopes helped both men get elected by allowing them to use the skills they honed as performers to project new roles for an audience of voters.

 

Even George Washington, as portrayed in David McCullough’s 1776, was a great political actor. McCullough reveals how Washington, influenced by contemporary theater, had the convincing ability to stage a politically impressive scene when called upon to do so.³ The first U.S. President was a Neptune (and Jupiter)-ruled Pisces.

 

Two recent Presidents also have evidence of a strong Neptune. President George W. Bush’s (see AstroFutureTrends Astrology article and horoscope) Neptune sextiles his Leo Ascendant, giving him the jocular charisma that reportedly washes over those he meets for the first time, and Bill Clinton has an exact, charismatic Mars-Neptune conjunction. Some might add that Clinton’s Mars-Neptune conjunction also made him politically elusive and hard to pin down, qualities which both elevated and subverted his presidency.

 

We often tend to disparage politicians’ use of Neptune when truth is concealed or the public is deceived. Both the positive and negative sides of Neptune are sometimes on display in the same political leader. President Nixon, for example, had a Saturn-Neptune sextile (with Pluto near the midpoint) and Sun-Neptune opposition. He had the foreign policy vision to open U.S. relations with China, but was also manipulative and deceptive.

 

Saturn and Neptune in Synastry: The Karl Rove Effect

 

When a candidate lacks a strong Saturn-Neptune aspect in the birth horoscope, he or she will often bond with a close political advisor who provides that aspect. For example, President George W. Bush does not have a natal Ptolemaic Saturn-Neptune aspect. However, Bush’s Neptune is at 5° Libra in his 3^rd house of communication. Bush’s close political advisor, Karl Rove (see AstroFutureTrends Astrology article and horoscope), has Saturn positioned at 2° Libra. Rove’s Saturnine political calculus strengthens Bush’s communication image. In addition, Rove’s Neptune squares Bush’s Saturn. More than one political commentator has remarked that without Karl Rove, Governor George W. Bush might never have become President Bush. Bush has made effective leadership use of Saturn—although not all voters find this to be commendable—and this nominally malefic planet has been politically beneficial for him. Bush was re-elected as transiting Saturn crossed over his natal Sun.

 

Similarly, former President Ronald Reagan had strong Neptune aspects to other planets, but he lacked a Saturn-Neptune aspect. However, he had James A. Baker, who managed his first presidential campaign and then became Reagan’s Chief of Staff. Baker’s Neptune exactly trined Reagan’s Saturn and Baker’s Saturn opposed Reagan’s Neptune.

 

President Nixon’s Chief of Staff, H.R. Haldeman, who spent 18 months in prison for conspiracy and obstruction of justice as a result of his role in the Watergate scandal, was largely responsible for shaping Nixon’s public image. Haldeman, whose professional background was in advertising, had a close natal square between Saturn and Neptune. His Saturn trined Nixon’s Neptune and Haldeman’s Neptune squared Nixon’s Saturn—all within a degree.

 

Saturn-Neptune and the 2008 U.S. Election

 

The 2008 U.S. presidential election will be the first since 1952 in which neither a sitting president nor an incumbent vice-president will be a candidate (Vice-President Dick Cheney--see AstroFutureTrends Astrology article and horoscope--has said he will not seek the presidency). It will, therefore, be the most wide-open presidential election in over half a century. At the time of the 2008 election, Uranus and Saturn will be within a degree of an exact opposition, and candidate aspects to that axis may well be a determining factor in the election.

 

The 2008 Libra solar ingress chart, set for Washington, DC, some six weeks before the national election, shows a close conjunction of Mercury and ingress chart ruling Mars (using Mars as the traditional ruler of Scorpio). These two planets in turn closely trine Neptune— further heightening this planet’s role in the election. Saturn, in the 10^th house, is the most elevated planet in this ingress chart. It is worth noting, too, that solar cardinal ingress charts throughout 2008 and 2009 will show the Sun making hard aspects to Pluto, denoting intense power struggles over national and world leadership.

 

Potential Presidential Candidates

 

The next presidential election is more than three years away, but that has not stopped a number of candidates from positioning themselves for possible runs for the Presidency. Saturn and Neptune are connected in these candidates’ horoscopes so frequently that it goes beyond mere coincidence. The following are some of the candidates who appear likely to run for U.S. President in 2008.

 

Democrats

·         Senator Hillary Clinton (see horoscope) is a Scorpio whose natal Neptune sextiles her exact power conjunction of Mars and Pluto in Leo. During the 2008 election, transiting Neptune will be squaring her Mercury and Venus—and exactly opposing her Saturn.

·         Virginia Governor Mark Warner—handsome, mediagenic, and a southern Democrat—has an exact conjunction of Saturn and Venus, the “lower octave” of Neptune, which works well to communicate the message: “I’m a politician who cares about you.”

·         John Edwards, the Democratic vice-presidential candidate in 2004 and a likely presidential candidate in 2008, has Saturn conjunct Neptune.

·         Senator Joseph Biden has a wide (8°) trine between Saturn and Neptune, strengthened by Pluto being near the midpoint.

·         Another Democrat who appears to be readying a run for the presidency, Indiana Senator (and former Governor) Evan Bayh, does not have a Saturn-Neptune aspect, although they both share the same sign (Scorpio) in his horoscope. However, he does have an exact square of Saturn and Pluto. His 4° Capricorn Sun will be riding the 2008 Pluto ingress into Capricorn.

·         British Prime Minister Tony Blair has a close conjunction of Saturn and Neptune. He won’t be running for President, of course, but he is a member of the Labor Party, the British political party closest in spirit to the American Democrats.  

    

Republicans

·         Former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani has a Saturn-Neptune square.

·         Florida Governor Jeb Bush has a Saturn-Neptune conjunction.

·         Senate majority leader Bill Frist is a Pisces medical doctor with a Saturn-Neptune conjunction.

·         Virginia Senator (and former Governor) George Allen ranks high in early political insider polls. He has a Saturn-Neptune conjunction.

·         Republican Senator John McCain (see AstroFutureTrends Astrology article and horoscope)has a natal Saturn-Neptune opposition. If elected, he would be the first Virgo president since LBJ. In the 2000 election, after he defeated Bush in the early primaries, McCain brandished a Star Wars light saber as a symbol of his fighting spirit, thus demonstrating his Neptunian ability to appropriate popular culture for Saturnine political ends—a fitting prop for someone with a Saturn-Neptune opposition. On election day 2008, McCain will experience an interesting confluence of astrological factors. His Saturn-Neptune opposition will be conjuncted by the Saturn-Uranus election opposition. His natal Moon is at the same position (27° Capricorn) as the U.S. horoscope Pluto. The next President will lead the nation as Pluto enters Capricorn, a perilous time.  McCain’s lunar north node—karmic destiny—is at 1°of Capricorn, and Pluto will also be at exactly 1°of Capricorn when the new president is sworn in to office in January, 2009.

  

Endnotes

1. Charles E. O. Carter, An Introduction to Political Astrology, Southampton, Great Britain: L.N. Fowler & Co. Ltd., 1980, p. 89.
2. This concept was nicely elucidated by Dale O’Brien in “Control of Thought and Emotion with Aquarian Airwaves,” NCGR Electronic Memberletter, Issue 9, 15 November 2004.
3. David McCullough, 1776, New York: Simon & Schuster, 2005.

 

Chart Data and Sources

 

The following birth data from http://www.astrodatabank.com/:

 

Arnold Schwarzenegger: July 30, 1947; 4:10 AM; Graz, Austria; source: from memory; D.C. Doane quotes a colleague from him.

 

Ronald Reagan: Feb. 6, 1911; no birth time; Tampico, IL.

 

George W. Bush: July 6, 1946; 7:26 AM; New Haven, CT; source: birth certificate.

 

Bill Clinton: Aug. 19, 1946; 8:51 AM; Hope, AR; source: from mother.

 

Richard Nixon: Jan. 9, 1913; 9:35 PM: Yorba Linda, CA: source: birth record.

 

 

Hillary Clinton: Oct. 26, 1947; 8:00 PM; Chicago, IL; birth time is conflicting and unverified.

 

John Edwards: June 10, 1953; 7:02 AM; Seneca, SC: accuracy of birth time in question.

 

Tony Blair: May 6, 1953; 6:10 AM; Edinburgh, Scotland: source: birth certificate.

 

John McCain: Aug. 29, 1936; 9:00 AM; Coco Solo Air Base, Panama Canal; source: from memory.

 

H.R. Haldeman: Oct. 27, 1926; 3:30 AM; Los Angeles, CA; source: Lois Rodden cites Contemporary Sidereal Horoscopes (Sidereal Research Publications, 1976).

 

 

The following birth data, all of which lack an exact birth time, were obtained from either http://www.en.wikipedia.org or Congressional websites:

 

Mark Warner: Dec. 15, 1954; Indianapolis, IN.

 

Joseph Biden: Nov. 20, 1942; Scranton, PA.

         

Evan Bayh: Dec. 26, 1955; Shirkieville, IN.

           

Rudy Giuliani: May 28, 1944; Brooklyn, NY.

 

Jeb Bush: Feb. 11, 1953; Midland, TX.

 

Bill Frist: Feb. 22, 1952; Nashville, TN.

 

George Allen: March 8, 1952; Whittier, CA.

 

Karl Rove: Dec. 25, 1950; Denver, CO.

 

James Baker: April 28, 1930; Houston, TX.

 

See also: articles on Senators Hillary Clinton, Russell Feingold, George Allen; President Bush's Year Ahead; Bush-McCain Horoscope Synastry; and Astrology of the 2008 U.S. Election