“All I’m asking for is a little
respect…”
Written by Smokey Robinson, immortalized by the great Aretha Franklin
What a harsh wind blew over us this week, breaking so many hearts with the death of the Queen of Soul, Aretha
Franklin on Thursday. We knew this was coming—hospice workers had moved into her home here
in the Detroit metro area, where her many friends and family members kept vigil
for the past couple days. Suffering the end stages of pancreatic cancer, it
simply was her time. Still, the news of her passing was a blow, and our world
already feels more sad and brittle without her.
Then it occurred to me what a perfectly ironic, if tragic, twist Ms.
Franklin’s death gives to this week in American news, when Donald Trump
unleashed a raw tantrum of emotions—like so much sewage—on another strong
African-American woman, Omarosa Manigault-Newman. His one-time reality-show “apprentice”
and most recently, terminated White House aide, Ms. Manigault-Newman has been
on the offensive, touring a tell-all book of her time in the Trump White House
entitled Unhinged: an Insider’s Account of the Trump White House.
Trump’s defensiveness is probably
warranted—the book should be intensely embarrassing to him—but his vicious Twitter
sputum was still revolting and a new low, even for him. Never fear, as fired
former FBI Director James Comey famously quipped, “Lordy, she has tapes!”
First she released a tape in which
administration members are discussing how to handle Trump’s historical uses of
the “N”-Word.
And then yesterday, Manigault-Newman released
a tape of Trump daughter-in-law Lara allegedly offering her a vague
$15k/month “campaign job” for remaining “positive” about Trump and little else.
No dice.
So, it’s been a week of passing, controversy
and a kind of poetic justice for strong black women, and even Donald
Trump—whose modus operandi with such individuals is to disparage their
intelligence and much worse—had a few nice things to say about the Queen. He had to say that she "worked for him"...really?! Is he trying to compete
with her for media attention? Stay
tuned!
On display in Biwheel #1 below is
Aretha Franklin’s natal chart (inner wheel), precisely timed according to her
birth certificate, and a noon chart for her day of death (outer wheel). We can
only speculate about the journey she was on at this point, so I won’t attempt
an in-depth analysis here, but one prominent transit speaks volumes about her
death, and it’s worth pondering.
So much of the media coverage of her death has
focused on her upbringing in the “Gospel” community, and the fact that her
singing—whether religiously themed or not—was profoundly moving. “When Aretha
sang, she brought you to God,” was one person’s comment. This theme features
prominently in this biwheel. Let’s begin.
Biwheel
#1: (inner wheel) Aretha
Franklin, March 25, 1942, 10:30 p.m. War Time, Memphis, TN; (outer wheel) Aretha
Franklin death, August 16, 2018, 12:00 p.m. (noon, no time available), Detroit,
MI (news reports). Tropical Equal Houses,
True Node.
Transiting Neptune conjoins/opposes Natal
Nodal Axis (Pisces-Virgo) and squares Natal Mars-Jupiter (Gemini). Neptune’s square
to Franklin’s Jupiter and Mars would have also been a
long-term, debilitating transit, and this undoubtedly factored into tipping
Franklin’s battle with cancer in the direction it did. Medical astrologers
would point out the bodily systems ruled by these planets and how their
weakening contributed to the situation.
It’s significant that the Neptune-Nodal
axis conjunction happens at the south node here; in fact, because of
its slow movement, Neptune has been hovering within orb of Franklin’s nodal
axis for at least a year and a half. This transit is not a signal of
impending death on its own, but it
can signal a drawn-out, debilitating passage, which fits her protracted battle
with pancreatic cancer.
I would argue
that Neptune
(even more than Pluto) seems to usher individuals
approaching death over that mythological “River” into the world beyond. Neptune—at
its best, known for compassion and grace—very gradually washes away the
boundaries between this world and the next and gently delivers the person into
eternal rest.
This is especially true in hospice
situations such as Franklin experienced; every effort was undoubtedly made to
keep her comfortable and pain-free, and to ease her into the next world. It’s
easy to see how these attributes of Neptune would be expressed in a
loving Christian vigil: in fact, Neptune and Pisces are often
associated with Christianity and its more compassionate impulses. Happily, we
know that the “Queen” was surrounded by loved ones in her final days.
Omarosa on tour
“I seriously began to suspect that the
president was delusional or had a mental condition…Was Donald like Ronald
Reagan, impaired while everyone around him ran the show and covered up for him?”
Unhinged, Omarosa Manigault-Newman, 2018
Ms. Manigault-Newman is considerably
younger than Aretha Franklin, but she certainly does her part to perpetuate a
“queenly” image for African-American women in our times. Confident, tough,
laser-focused on her goals and authoritative, she’s gained a reputation for
being one of Reality TV’s best “villains” over the years. I have to confess,
however, that she’s new to me: I never watched the Apprentice in her heyday. In fact, my first introduction to her was a disturbing prediction she made
on Frontline
before Trump was even elected:
“Every critic, every detractor, will have to bow down to President
Trump,” she said. "It’s everyone who’s ever doubted Donald, who
ever disagreed, who ever challenged him. It is the ultimate revenge to become
the most powerful man in the universe.”
Trump must have liked this statement because Manigault-Newman went on from
there to become the Trump administration’s director of African-American
outreach, and to be known as a top Trump “cheerleader.” These comments were
made in response to a question regarding the 2011 Washington Correspondent’s
Dinner in which then-President Obama took a comedic jab at Trump for promoting
his so-called “birther” conspiracy.![]() |
Omarosa Manigault-Newman |
Since being terminated by Chief of
Staff John Kelly—an encounter Manigault-Newman also taped and has since revealed—she has, of course, answered a
lot of questions about her loss of respect and faith in Trump, and she has been
very forthcoming about how deluded
she has been by him, as a potential “father figure.” She claims that during the
Apprentice years, she “wanted to be
like him,” energetic, resourceful and successful.
Now, her Unhinged book claims that (as summarized in the Washington
Post) Trump is “scattered, self-absorbed, misogynistic and insecure.”
In days of interviews she has suggested that his mental acuity isn’t what it
used to be—that he can’t focus and can’t comprehend complex policy arguments,
etc. And,
she claims that where she didn’t want to see his racist nature before, now it’s undeniable.
So is this just a case in which the
“protégée
turned her tactics against” the mentor? Or, has Manigault-Newman really
taken a sincere turn and decided to play whistleblower? As we’ll see in her
nativity, and in Biwheel #2 below
that with Trump’s nativity, there’s an argument for either one. So many have
pointed out that Trump “created” the Omarosa in this week’s headlines, so is
she just one more enemy of many, or something much, much worse?
Chart
#1: Omarosa Manigault-Newman, February 5, 1974, 10:54 p.m. DST, Youngstown,
OH. Source: Astrodatabank.com,
rated AA. Tropical Equal Houses, True
Node.
Sun-Jupiter (Aquarius) square Mars (Taurus).
A serious desire to grow and prosper (she admits to wanting to be a
billionaire) drives Manigault-Newman, a fact that’s reinforced by an ambitious Capricorn
Venus ruling her Libra-rising chart, and Pluto conjoining her ASC within
minutes.
Considering that this Venus occupies her 4th
house of family and heritage, this desire could be deeply-rooted in the
conditions she grew up in, and it may even transcend mere self-interest, being
a desire to elevate the quality of life for all African-Americans. It’s not
surprising that she found her way into the public eye as a Reality TV figure,
either—the Saturn disposing her 4th house Venus occupies
her 9th
house of media, ideology, etc.
Given the fixed nature of her
formidable Aquarius-Taurus squares, it’s not hard to imagine that Manigault-Newman
could intimidate anyone who crosses her, so the reports that Trump
administration aides are nearly panicked with fear about what her book tour
could reveal sound pretty credible.
With that said, however,
Manigault-Newman has not come by her reputation all that easily: none of her planets is placed in a
ruling sign, and some are placed in downright difficult signs. This is the case with her Pisces Mercury, disposing
her Gemini
Saturn. This placement could present challenges for staying focused and
thinking clearly, and it may explain why she gravitated to a Gemini “father
figure” who turned out to be so disenchanting for her.
It may also explain why
she had no scruples about recording so many conversations in the White House. If
she was so deluded by and caught up in Trump’s cult of personality, as she
claims, why would she do that?
Despite that question, being disenchanted is a definite
pitfall with such Neptunian (Pisces) relationships. It’s significant also that
this Pisces
Mercury inconjoins her elevated, 10th house Leo
Moon, ruling her Cancer MC. Trump may not be the first
“parent” to disappoint.
That same inconjunct suggests that
Manigault-Newman really needs to be
the “Star” on some stage, and it’s totally conceivable that her book tour and
the release of incriminating tapes is, at its core, an attempt to capture the
world’s attention. However, let’s give her motives the benefit of the doubt for
a moment here—we all need attention in some way, and a lot of good deeds are
done by people who thrive on public acclaim. Besides, there’s more to her attention-seeking than meets
the eye.
Saturn-So. Node (Gemini) oppose No. Node-GC
(Galactic Center, Sagittarius). The Galactic Center (26°-27°Sag) is a massive black hole that has long been
considered an important point, astrologically; in fact, it’s been specifically
associated in astrologer Mandi Lockley’s
research study with whistleblowing. In
fact, the charts of many such individuals—including Edward Snowden, Chelsea
Manning, Julian Assange, Karen Silkwood and many others—feature aspects with
this point.
So considering this aspect in Manigault-Newman’s chart, it’s
conceivable that she was “born” to the task of exposing corruption on high. Saturn’s
presence even suggests that it’s her “duty” to do so, while the 3rd-9th
house placement of the opposition reflects her use of the media and publishing
in the process.
Could a born whistleblower also be an attention hound? Why not?
Whistleblowers aren’t always hailed as heroes, but they serve a critical
purpose. In today’s case, Manigault-Newman is taking on a corrupt White House
when the entire GOP Congress has its blinders on, hoping the issues simply go
away. We don’t have to like her to
appreciate how she’s drawing Trump’s fire on herself for the sake of exposing
what she experienced in his administration. She is probably emboldened by the
fact that her Aquarius Sun has progressed into Aries in the past couple
years, at roughly the same time Trump’s Gemini Sun has progressed into
Virgo.
It’s no surprise that they don’t see eye-to-eye right now!
![]() |
They've had better days. |
At this point, let’s examine their
astrological relationship a bit more deeply. Biwheel #2 below puts Trump’s nativity (inner wheel) against
Manigualt-Newman’s (outer wheel).
Biwheel
#2: (inner wheel) Donald J.
Trump, June 14, 1946, 10:54 a.m. DST, Jamaica, New York; (outer wheel) Omarosa
Manigault-Newman, February 5, 1974, 10:54 p.m. DST, Youngstown, OH. Source: Astrodatabank.com,
rated AA. Tropical Equal Houses, True
Node.
My goal here is not to pick apart
every interaspect between their charts, but to get a sense of the ties that bind them, once as mentor and protégée, then as boss and aide, and now as enemy
combatants. The ties are there, whether they’re mutually supportive or quite
the opposite. In every relationship there are expectations between the parties
(reciprocity, mutual advantages, freedom to express, lines that must not be
crossed, power dynamics, etc.), projected emotions, shared dreams and/or delusions, as well as
some kind of “meeting of the minds.”
As we’ve been learning quite starkly
lately, loyalty is one of Trump’s
major expectations of everyone—and it
certainly seems that he inspired that in Manigault-Newman early on, but then he has no trouble throwing
his so-called “friends” under the bus, so reciprocity is not his strong suit. In
fact, a Washington
Post opinion piece today says
that Manigault-Newman is exposing Trump’s “deeply twisted view of loyalty.”
It’s all one way, or not at all. Where will we see that tendency in these
charts?
In short, these are the “ties that
bind” that we’ll quickly examine.
Interchart
Grand Air Trine: Manigault-Newman (MN)
Sun-Jupiter (Aquarius) trine Trump Uranus-No. Node-Sun (Gemini) and MN
Saturn-So. Node (Gemini), all of this trine Trump Jupiter (Libra). Despite
a couple overly wide orbs here, this airy configuration has quite a robust flow.
Here’s one strong indication that their thinking was, in general, richly
compatible and interactive. Innovative ideas probably flowed freely when they
were actively working together; in fact, it appears that MN’s thinking
outstripped Trump’s, but there was also a power imbalance between them (that might account for the one-way “loyalty” issue), and she probably learned early on that he doesn’t
welcome criticism.
This point is seen in how MN
Jupiter opposes Trump Mars-ASC (Leo). As long as the ideas flowed in a
non-judgmental fashion, and things stayed “light” (air) between them, Trump
found MN’s Aquarian brilliance and aggressive demeanor useful; however, he
doesn’t share control unless it's to his advantage to do so (say, to avoid accountability), so the fixed
energies in this aspect would put them at loggerheads. My guess is, with these
fixed Aquarius energies and her added Taurus Mars and Leo Moon, MN can hold her
own in the face of his fiery temper. Maybe
he’s met his temperamental match?
MN Venus (Capricorn) opposes Trump Saturn-Venus
(Cancer). MN and Trump share similar, or at least complementary values,
and this aspect probably explains in part why she considered him a “father
figure” early on. Projection is a real possibility here: he had what she aspired to, at least in
their Apprentice days. Her
disenchantment with him may be as much about disappointed ambitions than
anything—or because he just somehow fell off the pedestal of her admiration.
If
he started to feel vulnerable or weak to her, (constantly touting a“victimization” narrative will do that), or if she sensed fear instead of
competence in him, she would probably have little respect for it. All of these
are quite possible, considering that transiting Pluto (Capricorn) is also
widely opposing Trump’s Saturn-Venus at this time. It will
catch up to her Venus as well, as the orb tightens—should be interesting!
MN Mercury (Pisces) trines Trump Mercury
(Cancer). When MN says she was “deluded” into following Trump, this
aspect probably lights up in response. It’s worth adding that both charts feature a Mercury-Neptune
square: Trump’s (which disposes his entire Gemini stellium) falls in
cardinal Cancer-Libra), and MN’s in disruptive, mutable Pisces-Sagittarius.
This parallel is enhanced by MN’s Pluto conjoining Trump’s Neptune
within a degree, and her Mercury quincunxing it. The Washington Post article cited earlier seems
to capture the “entangled den of thieves” sense of all this really well:
“When the Omarosa tapes first started surfacing, Trump
blasted his own former director of African American outreach as a “lowlife,”
leading many to chortle that Trump had revealed his own bad judgment in hiring.
But the better way to view this is that Trump hired her expecting at the outset
that she would inevitably prove a lowlife who would turn on him at
some point for a quick buck — because Trump thinks just about everyone
is a lowlife and expects everyone to always sell each other out
eventually.”
It would be unfair to judge
Manigault-Newman’s motives and moral compass without a lot more evidence, but if
the mental parallels between these two truly do run deep, it’s likely that she’s
not willing to give her loyalty
unconditionally, for nothing in return, and that
may have been the breaking point between them. Besides, she's learned to play the Reality TV power-games he taught her fifteen years ago. Regardless of her motives, however,
if Manigault-Newman succeeds in exposing true corruption in the Trump White
House, she will deserve credit.
She is not going to be treated kindly in the process, like so many other
whistleblowers, but despite all the legal weapons at his disposal, Trump may
not be able to easily hush her up and discard her. There will be no unhearing the recordings that she is releasing one by one. The question will be, what's next?
Our Congress should have such guts!!
“Aretha Franklin, 1942-2018…Forever our Queen of Soul”
a sign on the Fox Theater marquis, Detroit,
8/16/2018
Raye
Robertson is a practicing astrologer, writer and former educator. A graduate of
the Faculty of Astrological Studies (U.K.), Raye focuses on mundane,
collective-oriented astrology, with a particular interest in current affairs,
culture and media, the astrology of generations, and public concerns such as
education and health. Several of her articles on these topics have been
featured in The Mountain Astrologer and other publications over the years.
She is
also available to read individual charts—contact her at: robertsonraye@gmail.com.
© Raye Robertson 2018. All
rights reserved.