 |
| Musician John Prine was featured in the DNC's "In Memoriam" |
“I remember
everything…”—John Prine
We witnessed the first-ever virtual political convention this past week, which was, in some
weird way, far more enjoyable
and effective an event than many anticipated. The highlights that caught my
attention were the ones that captured the amazing mosaic of American life, from
“sea to shining sea” and much, much more (who knew that there are 57 states and territories that cast
convention votes?). Dems are known for welcoming all the wonderful colors and
textures of our collective life into one expansive “tent” of a party, and to my
eye, the virtual format did a very respectable job of representing all that,
bringing the character of the Party, its platform and its candidates into focus.
In fact, the Democratic National Committee (DNC) even had
the good sense to provide a COVID-19 “In
Memoriam” montage, graced by the haunting music of one of COVID’s fallen heroes,
John Prine. To my mind, the signature empathy we’ve come to expect from the
Party, not to mention from both Biden and Harris individually, found collective voice in that memorial
segment, and that empathy set the tone for the entire convention from there on.
Were there flaws in those proceedings? Many called Rep.
Julian Castro’s notable absence on the speakers’ list a definite flaw—he
featured in a quick video clip, but his absence as a more prominent speaker did
feel like a significant void, especially considering how essential Latino-x
community support could be this November. It appeared that the DNC relegated
him to the category of those who “ran against Biden and lived to support him
anyway”—a fun vignette in its own right, but time will tell if Castro’s stature
as the nation’s most prominent Latino in government should have been given
special attention.
It’s hard to imagine that the Latino-x community will
find any reason to vote for Trump,
but they may have less reason to be excited by the Biden-Harris ticket than
they would have had Castro played a more serious role in the convention, and
that feels like an unfortunate oversight. On the plus side, the convention
featured an array of Republicans for Biden, including a
major segment by former Ohio Governor, John Kasich. Is the DNC hoping that more
GOP’ers will switch teams in November? Or was the shock value of Republican
support for a Dem the whole point of the exercise?
Character is
often cited as the determining factor for those attracted to the now-official
Biden-Harris ticket, so as promised in the last post here, the focus of this article will be the astrology of these two
candidates as a team. In other words,
whereas the last post explored each of their natal charts in turn and
considered a key moment in each of their careers, today the focus is on how
they are likely to work together as a governing duo. How their individually
strong characters will blend as they carry out their everyday Executive
responsibilities. We have a fair idea now what their respective strengths
are—the focus here is on what dynamics will drive their partnership and what
strengths and/or weaknesses they will inspire in each other. How they will
impact each other on a number of necessary levels.
 |
| This may be true astrologically, too! |
Built into those “greater context” discussions will also
be some consideration for how Biden and Harris are likely to stack up in terms
of the difficult-to-define quality of leadership.
This ineffable factor has taken center stage lately by its sheer absence from
the White House during the COVID crisis, and it’s also crowded into our public
awareness through the specter of White House-driven voter suppression tactics only thinly disguised as “reforms” to the
nation’s oldest institution and
service organization, the U.S. Postal Service.
If we believe that by definition leadership requires some virtue and dedication, just being
at the head of an organization or nation is not enough, but there is a spectrum of effectiveness and skill that should
probably be considered, from “truly incompetent and/or malevolent to the
People’s interests” (the negative extreme) to “highly-skilled, effective and/or
inspiring to the People” on the positive extreme. Most administrations fall
somewhere between those two poles, of course, but many have moved by increments
to one side or the other according to how well they demonstrated a real commitment
to the Constitution, the People’s needs and future, and to going above and
beyond to support the “better angels” of our collective nature. What these
variances in leadership styles look like astrologically is a bit of a mystery,
but to my mind, well-worth exploring.
Towards that end, before we take a look at the charts
that might give us perspective into where a Biden-Harris presidency could fall
on that spectrum, let’s consider a few basic ideas about leadership, and what
qualities have long been associated with competent leadership.
 |
| A question for our time: what makes for good leadership? |
A short list
To the extent that political leadership is a collective-oriented career by
definition, it’s probably safe to assume that a collectively-oriented nativity
will help. People come to the business of politics from many different
perspectives, however: some take an almost abstract interest in the affairs of
leadership because they are attuned to the core Being or mission of the nation
they wish to represent. They may be
attuned on several levels, in fact—intellectual, emotional, ambition, a quest
for prestige, dignity, to fulfill a family dream, a patriotic duty, etc.
To hear them talk, would-be leaders are often driven by
some personal “dream” or desire to make a lasting difference in this world, but
if there is no collective component to that dream (in other words, they’re in
it for themselves only), things can get dicey. It helps for leaders to have a
strong ego, of course, but even better is a strong ego, purified and rendered diligent,
committed, responsible and humble in Saturn’s
rigorous boot camp. How else to identify with and appreciate the struggles of
the people they wish to lead? Developing these qualities requires Saturn’s
gift of time—the best argument, I
think, for the age limits we have traditionally put on top office holders.
To my mind, there should be more than a set of unspoken
“norms” directing who can run for the nation’s highest office. Like requiring some governing experience before running—the
government is a complex network of service institutions (like the Post Office),
not a business, and shouldn’t be
treated as such; it takes an array of specialized skills to represent others and govern well, and great business leaders do
not often make great politicians.
Those we contemplate voting into office should clearly
know and value our Constitution;
swearing an oath to this foundational document hasn’t been taken very seriously
lately, and that’s a real problem—the Constitution is the glue that holds us
together as a nation. Instead we’ve had
candidates galore who pick and choose which parts of the Constitution and the
Rule of Law they like and which ones they don’t. We have democratic processes
and mechanisms for changing laws that need changing—the Constitution is an
evolving document, but in a Rule of Law nation, there’s no random picking and
choosing.
We expect leaders to demonstrate an interest in other people’s lives and in using their
talents to make those lives better—these
individuals should understand the difference between power and service, in
other words. In the end, it’s about
candidates understanding that the presidency can never be about exalting one person over everyone else. Enough
with celebrities who need the spotlight 24/7: the Founding Fathers knew better—they fought to overcome a tyrant
monarchy.
Unfortunately, it’s hard to miss that many of the reasons
people choose to pursue leadership can be deeply toxic. Like trying to fulfill
a purely personal identity-, family-, or even worse, a race-driven ideal of superiority:
what do we think all those superlatives Trump sprinkles throughout his monologues
are about? In this world we desperately need for everyone to excel and to offer their best to society—it’s not a contest to prove supremacy, as it’s clearly been for Trump; it
should be a quest to serve that celebrates others’ success. Now Trump
wants his face carved into Mt. Rushmore—who
is arrogant enough to even float that idea? It’s not enough that he works
to tear down his recent predecessors’ accomplishments—does he plan to blast the
other faces off that mountain to make room for his, too? Just him and “Honest Abe,” huh?
Bottom line, megalomaniacs make great dictators and
criminals—they’re certainly their own
greatest heroes, as a world full of monuments built on order to glorify their
egos can attest—but they do not make
good leaders for the masses of people.
So to summarize, what are the features of a “strong, but effective” leader? It’s always easier to
tell in retrospect, of course—history tells the story better than we can “in
media res.” Yet, I think there’s a short list of very reasonable qualities that
people look for in a leader, especially one at the top levels:
·
they’re problem solvers, driven in a spirit of
service to get things done for people
·
they’re process-oriented (i.e., they know how to
manage a project from idea to final product—it’s harder than it looks)
·
they are pragmatic idealists who walk their talk
·
they take
responsibility for errors and share
credit for successes
·
they’re open to others’ ideas, seek out more
experienced mentors, and can take criticism
·
they involve as many voices as possible when
framing their agendas
·
they do their homework, going above and beyond
to understand what is at stake for the people they represent in every vote they
cast
·
they wield power carefully, humbly and responsibly, with respect for all the people they represent
·
they are willing, when appropriate and
beneficial, to compromise
·
they speak and behave honestly, humanely and
with compassion, and they inspire trust and admiration
·
their behavior reflects a strong “person of
character,” striving to live with courage, virtue and kindness in this world
·
they demonstrate a deep concern for justice
Obviously, there aren’t that many saints out there
waiting to run for office, so political leaders are as much “works in progress”
as the rest of us, but we should be able to demand a certain level of integrity
and heart, for want of a better word,
in the leaders who ask for our votes. It’s not asking too much that our leaders
reflect the best of us.
It’s simply not enough that the would-be leader has
friends in high places, knows how to dominate the news feed, and is adept at
turning dollars over in the Market. Those are magic tricks picked up during
lives of privilege—not signs of a capacity for leadership. Can the person work with people to attack our society’s (and
our world’s) problems with
substantive short- and long-term solutions? Can they achieve good things
without devastating some segment of our own population, or destroying our
critical relationships? Do they care about what's happening to our planet? Competency matters, but it matters more that it’s
motivated by heart. Matthew Fox
reminds us that “truth and justice reside in the heart” (111)—without heart, everything goes wrong.[1]
The astrology
So what will the qualities of a good leader look like in
a natal chart? It can be difficult to judge what’s in a person’s heart from
looking at their chart because the same planetary placements can manifest in
myriad ways, but deeper layers of meaning will emerge from a chart when we have
at least some familiarity with the
person in question. Even so, over many years of poring over the charts of
public servants and leaders, I have come to expect certain key factors that are
worth enumerating before we consider the charts ahead:
·
significant connections (by house, aspects,
dispositor or rulership) between personal (Sun-through-Mars) and social (Jupiter-Saturn)
planets, and between personal and collective (Uranus, Neptune, Pluto, Chiron)
planets.
·
signs of a potential collective focus—i.e.,
personal planets in collective houses (7-12), collective planets in personal
houses (1-6).
·
a prominent Jupiter-Saturn profile, indicating
how education, philosophical mindset, work ethic, opportunity and hard-won
expertise have translated over time into social and professional stature.
·
significant generational factors (signaled by
outer-planetary cycle moments the person was born into, and the native’s
cyclical index)
Notice that neither
of the lists laid out above include religious
leanings; I think it’s clear from how religion and the appearance of
religiosity (i.e., that infamous “Bible salute” in front of St. John’s
Episcopal that required clearing Lafayette Park of peaceful protestors) has
been hijacked in the past four years to serve questionable political purposes
makes religious affiliation a poor substitute for most other leadership
qualities. In the hands of unscrupulous politicos (notice I don’t say
“leaders”), religion has been weaponized to divide us and to inflict too much
harm on too many in this nation and elsewhere. Spirituality is quite another matter—a leader with a convincingly
mature spiritual life—not one on display,
necessarily, but one that shows up in his/her behavior—would be refreshing beyond words.
So how can we think about a political candidate—or in the
case of Biden and Harris, a political partnership—in
astrological terms? For instance, what do the Sun and Moon represent in a political entity? In so far as leadership is a matter of fulfilling the “logic” and “Soul” of
one’s “Being,” we would expect to see the Sun and Moon somehow connected to
the collective realm in their charts.
This could happen as a matter of progressions, too—if all goes well, we do
evolve over time into our higher selves, and for some that entails taking on
responsible positions in society that they couldn’t have envisioned earlier in
life.
 |
| Harris says she would have picked Biden to be her VP, too! |
In this sense, leadership seems to be central to both
Biden’s and Harris’s Being – all
their Sun and Moon connections are either located in the upper hemisphere or
they bridge the personal/collective divide through a combination of personal
and collective factors. Between them, Biden has a lower hemisphere Moon-Uranus
relationship, but as we’ll see, even that relationship “pings” with upper
hemisphere points.
It could be, in fact, that the American presidency—a
position that basically swallows the individual’s personal life whole—requires this kind of “whole Being”
affinity for a collectively-driven life.
Notice below that I’ve shown both their natal charts alone first (see here for the analyses I included in the last post), so we can see how
such factors are arranged natally, and following those is Triwheel #1, with the Biden and Harris charts set against the Sibly
chart.
 |
| Harris kept Biden's feet to the fire in one debate--her ticket to VP? |
Biden on a quest
Chart #1: Joseph
Biden, November 20, 1942, 8:30 a.m. War Time (Rated: A, from memory),
Scranton, PA. Tropical Equal Houses, True
Node. All charts cast, courtesy of Kepler 8.0 Cosmic Patterns software.
As noted, I wrote a detailed analysis for Biden’s chart
in the last post here, however, drawing points from the following table, we’ll
take a quick look at personal/collective factors touched upon earlier. Notice
that I’ve color-coded the entries in Table
1, and that to simplify the terminology, I will refer to all planets from Jupiter to Chiron as being
collective). Accordingly, the color
key is as follows:
·
Blue
denotes a personal/collective combination (i.e. one planet in the upper, one
planet in the lower hemisphere);
·
Yellow
denotes all personal (both planets in
the “personal” lower hemisphere);
·
Green denotes
all collective (both planets in the
“collective” upper hemisphere).
Table 1. Joe
Biden’s personal/collective placements in Chart
#1.
Su-Jup
|
Su-Sat
|
Su-Ur
|
Su-Ne
|
Su-Plu
|
Su-Chi
|
Mo-Jup
|
Mo-Sat
|
Mo-Ura
|
Mo-Nep
|
Mo-Plu
|
Mo-Chi
|
Hses
|
Hses
|
Hses
|
Hses
|
Hses
|
Hses
|
Hses
|
Hses
|
Hses
|
Hses
|
Hses
|
Hses
|
12-8
|
12-7
|
12-6
|
12-10
|
12-9
|
5-8
|
5-8
|
5-7
|
5-6
|
5-9
|
5-10
|
5-9
|
Me-Jup
|
Me-Sat
|
Me-Ur
|
Me-Nep
|
Me-Plu
|
Me-Chi
|
Ven-Jup
|
Ven-Sat
|
Ven-Ura
|
Ven-Nep
|
Ven-Plu
|
Ven-Chi
|
12-8
|
12-7
|
12-6
|
12-10
|
12-9
|
12-9
|
12-8
|
12-7
|
12-6
|
12-10
|
12-9
|
12-9
|
Ma-Jup
|
Ma-Sat
|
Ma-Ur
|
Ma-Nep
|
Ma-Plu
|
Ma-Chi
|
Jup-Sat
|
Jup-Ura
|
Jup-Nep
|
Jup-Plu
|
Jup-Chi
|
|
12-8
|
12-7
|
12-6
|
12-10
|
12-9
|
12-9
|
8-7
|
8-6
|
8-10
|
8-9
|
8-9
|
|
Sat-Ura
|
Sat-Nep
|
Sat-Plu
|
Sat-Chi
|
Ura-Nep
|
Ura-Plu
|
Ura-Chi
|
Nep-Plu
|
Nep-Chi
|
Plu-Chi
|
||
7-6
|
7-10
|
7-9
|
7-9
|
6-10
|
6-9
|
6-9
|
10-9
|
10-9
|
9-9
|
Clearly, one point that leaps out at us from this table
is that Biden’s chart is very heavily-focused on the collective, upper
hemisphere (green), reflecting that he’s built his entire life around positions and issues in the collective. Also, it’s
notable that his packed 12th house has basically been the driving
force of this career—not exactly what we normally expect from 12th
house planets. This was made possible, it seems, by the many aspects connecting
other houses with points in that 12th
house, such as his nice trines between 8th house Jupiter (Rx,
Cancer) and Mercury, Sun, Venus (Scorpio).
Biden’s only collective
planet residing in the lower hemisphere is Uranus (Gemini), which conjoins
his DSC
and Saturn from the 6th house and rules his 3rd
house of schooling, speech (Mercury, natural ruler) and local
community. What better description of the “stutter” that he’s had to overcome,
and the important life lessons he learned from that experience? At the very
least, it made for a memorable segment during the Dems convention last week, where
it served to “humanize” Biden and demonstrate his concern for a fellow
“sufferer,” 13-year
old Brayden Harrington.
 |
| Brayden Harrington credited Biden with helping him overcome a stutter. |
The greater significance of that stutter in Biden’s life is
only reinforced by his 12th house Mercury (Scorpio) disposing
both his Gemini points (Saturn-DSC-Uranus) and his Virgo
No. Node and MC. The inner drive (perhaps projected on to him by
parents and upbringing) to “do the right thing” (Virgo) in the world can be
enough to cause stutters and more. Amazingly, this Uranus also t-squares
his Nodal Axis (Virgo-Pisces), reflecting a life in public service
(6th
house Uranus) that has been prone to repeated shocking developments and
challenges.
Biden’s Moon in earthy Taurus is his only other
major point placed in the lower hemisphere, but even that point “pings” with
the upper hemisphere by ruling his Cancer 8th and disposing
his exalted Cancer Jupiter residing there. That one connection assures
that the Moon’s lovely Venusian outlook will be felt in all
of Jupiter’s
connections. It’s no wonder Biden is known for his easy rapport with people
on both sides of the D.C. aisle—he’s been given the gift of gab and relatedness
(5th house, Moon disposed by Venus)—gifts
that he seems to use for good purposes in the public realm, perhaps reflected
in the Moon’s nice trine to his No. Node (Virgo).
This warm, pragmatic Moon plays the additional role of
lending warmth to collective placements that could come across as too “rational”
or “technocratic.” Even so, it appears that Biden may have had to work at the relationships he’s built
over the years—his 12th h. Venus (Scorpio) inconjoins his Moon—perhaps
the reason he had to propose
to wife Jill five times before she said yes?
It’s also interesting to me that Biden’s Chiron
(Leo) conjoins his No. Node, and that both are elevated in
his key 9th house. Mundane
astrology closely follows 9th house issues with nations, like their foreign policies and
relationships: here we see how those issues
intersect with the Jupiterian dimension of a
politician’s life and character. A constructive openness to the world and an
ability to not only see the “big
picture,” but to envision himself playing a key role in that picture should be
considered an important prerequisite for an American president, and here we see
that Biden’s Sun rules this Leo house and the points therein.
This and his nice Jupiter Rx-Sun trine suggest that he is quite comfortable on
that world stage and that he’s motivated to make a difference there.
 |
| Beau Biden's untimely death in June, 2015 prompted Biden to pull out of the campaign. |
Finally, I suspect that if elected, Biden will run a very
“9th house” presidency—as Table
1 shows, his Jupiter links his 5th, 6th, 7th,
8th, 9th and 12th houses together in
one way or another, and for that matter (not on the Table), Jupiter
also rules his entire chart (Sagittarius rising). Even retrograde [when does it turn by
progression?], Jupiter just naturally draws everything into its expansive 9th
house focus, which probably accounts for his charm and appeal as a politician—across the aisle, even. With so much Jupiterian energy driving
his chart, Biden’s likely to use his political power in upbeat, optimistic and
growth-oriented ways. Considering his
age, he could project a “wise, grandfatherly elder” image from the White House that many find
appealing.
 |
| The right person for the right time? |
Kamala Harris on
the move
Chart #2: Kamala
Harris, October 20, 1964, 9:28 p.m. DST (Rated AA: BC/BR in
hand), Oakland, CA. Tropical Equal
Houses, True Node. All charts cast, courtesy of Kepler 8.0 Cosmic Patterns
software
As we did with Biden, let’s take a look at how the
personal/collective factors map out in her nativity, in Table 2 below. The same color-code applies here as did in Table 1.
Table 2. Kamala
Harris’s personal/collective placements in Chart
#2.
Su-Jup
|
Su-Sat
|
Su-Ur
|
Su-Ne
|
Su-Plu
|
Su-Chi
|
Mo-Jup
|
Mo-Sat
|
Mo-Ura
|
Mo-Nep
|
Mo-Plu
|
Mo-Chi
|
Hses
|
Hses
|
Hses
|
Hses
|
Hses
|
Hses
|
Hses
|
Hses
|
Hses
|
Hses
|
Hses
|
Hses
|
5-11
|
5-9
|
5-3
|
5-5
|
5-3
|
5-9
|
11-11
|
11-9
|
11-3
|
11-5
|
11-3
|
11-9
|
Me-Jup
|
Me-Sat
|
Me-Ur
|
Me-Nep
|
Me-Plu
|
Me-Chi
|
Ven-Jup
|
Ven-Sat
|
Ven-Ura
|
Ven-Nep
|
Ven-Plu
|
Ven-Chi
|
5-11
|
5-9
|
5-3
|
5-5
|
5-3
|
5-9
|
3-11
|
3-9
|
3-3
|
3-5
|
3-3
|
3-9
|
Ma-Jup
|
Ma-Sat
|
Ma-Ur
|
Ma-Nep
|
Ma-Plu
|
Ma-Chi
|
Jup-Sat
|
Jup-Ura
|
Jup-Nep
|
Jup-Plu
|
Jup-Chi
|
|
2-11
|
2-9
|
2-3
|
2-5
|
2-3
|
2-9
|
11-9
|
11-3
|
11-5
|
11-3
|
11-9
|
|
Sat-Ura
|
Sat-Nep
|
Sat-Plu
|
Sat-Chi
|
Ura-Nep
|
Ura-Plu
|
Ura-Chi
|
Nep-Plu
|
Nep-Chi
|
Plu-Chi
|
||
9-3
|
9-5
|
9-3
|
9-9
|
3-5
|
3-3
|
3-9
|
5-3
|
5-9
|
3-9
|
We certainly see a couple powerful focus points in
Harris’s chart here—namely, her 3rd, 5th, 9th
and 11th houses—houses that in my experience are often
prominent with politics-minded individuals. It’s hard to miss the several
strong oppositions cutting across those houses (see here
for more on the configurations that arise from these), not to mention her somewhat
strained upper hemisphere Jupiter Rx-Saturn Rx square
(Taurus-Aquarius).
You might recall, in fact, that on that bullet-point list
of astrological qualities we might expect to see in an effective leader, I said
the following:
·
a prominent Jupiter-Saturn profile, indicating
how education, philosophical mindset, work ethic, opportunity and hard-won
expertise have translated over time into social and professional stature.
A square between
Jupiter
Rx and Saturn Rx, especially placed between the key 9th
and 11th houses, suggests a life that has been directed
with great disciplined effort towards a public career in the Law. Her career history
as a lawyer and Attorney General for California certainly fits this profile. Jupiter
rules her 7th house from the 11th, suggesting
that she can be a strong partner to Biden, with his many Jupiterian qualities
(more on that when we put the charts together), although with her Jupiter
inconjunct 5th house Sun, t-square her Mars-Saturn Rx opposition
(Leo-Aquarius) and semi-sextile her own 11th
house Moon (Aries), she will need to feel their partnership is equal, and that she will have the
freedom to work on her own projects within their administration. To do
otherwise would feel too paternalistic to her and limiting, considering that both
Jupiter
and Saturn are retrograde (are they turning soon?)
Harris’s chart features seven planets in the personal lower hemisphere, including three key outer planets. Counting Chiron
(also Rx), that leaves four major
points in her more collective, upper hemisphere. I am reminded by this
distribution that women often need to
balance out home and career in different ways than men do, despite a century of
strides in women’s rights. This balancing act has been in the headlines more
than usual lately because of the strains put on families by COVID-19, so
clearly there are more milestones for women left to accomplish, like work-place
child care, paid family leave and so on. In any case, how fitting is it that Harris
is on the ticket during this 100th anniversary of women finally
gaining the vote?
Talk about balancing acts, it’s interesting in Harris’s
case that her lower-hemisphere outer planets (Uranus-Pluto-Neptune) are
all firmly connected to planets in
her upper hemisphere, reflecting an inner drive to bridge that personal/collective
divide that has stopped so many women from fulfilling their potentials.
In the last post here,
we explored how social turmoil and pressure for change formed the atmosphere Harris
grew up in from day one—she was born just a year prior to the passage of the
Voting Rights Act of 1965, and her activist parents provided her with a
“stroller’s-eye view” of that era’s racial justice protests. This perspective
was firmly engrained in her by the generational Uranus-Pluto (Virgo) conjunction
that perfected just months after her birth, conjunct
her Venus (Virgo), which falls trine her 11th house Jupiter and
opposite her 9th house Chiron (Pisces). So again, it
certainly seems that her life just naturally unfolded as a give-and-take
between the personal and collective realm.
Yes, it’s an important center of gravity
for her life and career—not only is motherhood an important anchoring point for
her, but a career agenda that fully supports and celebrates strong women and
regards women like the force for change (her Uranus-Pluto-Venus conjunction in
Virgo) they are would be a natural extension of this for her.
So how would that work within a Biden-Harris
relationship? Is the nation ready for the leadership team they would bring to
the Oval Office? Let’s move on to Triwheel #1 below.
 |
| A partnership that will hopefully draw out the best in both of them. |
The Biden-Harris
team in the White House
Triwheel #1:(inner wheel) U.S.A. (Sibly) chart, July 4, 1776, 5:10 p.m. LMT,
Philadelphia, PA; (middle wheel) Joseph Biden, November 20, 1942, 8:30 a.m. War
Time (Rated: A, from
memory), Scranton, PA; (outer wheel) Kamala
Harris, October 20, 1964, 9:28 p.m. DST (Rated AA: BC/BR in
hand), Oakland, CA. Tropical Equal
Houses, True Node. All charts cast, courtesy of Kepler 8.0 Cosmic Patterns
software.
Harris Sun-Moon (Libra-Aries) inconjoins
Biden Sun-Venus (Scorpio); her Sun sextiles Biden Chiron-No. Node. Her Sun-Moon
opposition forms a grand square with Biden’s Jupiter (Rx, Cancer) opposition to
Sibly Pluto (Capricorn). Inconjunct relationships are common between partnered
individuals in both the personal and professional realms because the subtle
tension can be motivational, keeping their mutual expectations high. Clearly,
Harris is in accord with Biden’s “quest” (Virgo No. Node-Leo Chiron) and in
fact, is poised to act on it (her Mars conjoins
his Chiron).
Both individuals
find challenging, but workable common ground in the grand square, however,
especially in their connectedness with Sibly Pluto, suggesting they will be
challenged to coordinate on issues concerning the Economy and the role of big
finance and corporate lobbies in our democracy. We can envision campaign
finance laws coming under review here—an issue Biden championed way back when
anyway, but which seriously needs work again. Will they be able to marshal the
overturning of the Supreme Court’s Citizens
United decision and its toxic impact on our elections? It’s likely to be a
goal. They may not agree about the degree of change that is needed, but they
should be able to work through any differences, and they will agree on the serious
need for action (cardinal grand square).
 |
| Biden benefits from long relationships and good friends. |
Biden’s several contacts with Sibly Neptune—including his
own Neptune
(Libra) conjoined Sibly MC (Libra)—work to render him believable when
he talks about American ideals because it all sounds natural coming from him. Harris’s
strong Uranus-Pluto-Venus (Virgo) placements in this same area will
liven up Biden’s messages and give urgency to needed social changes. Her Uranus-Pluto-Venus
sextile Sibly Sun (Cancer) and Biden Mars (Scorpio) as well—it appears
her generational concerns will provide something of a “bridge” between Biden
and the presidency, inspiring their agenda. Biden’s Mars (Scorpio) is a
driven, capable, managerial type, so its wide trine to Sibly
Jupiter also suggests that he can successfully shepherd the nation’s
economy.
Biden Uranus-Saturn-DSC (Gemini) conjoin
Sibly Uranus (Gemini) and trine Sibly MC (Libra). Harris Eris (Rx, Aries)
sextiles Biden Uranus-Saturn and Sibly Uranus, and squares Sibly Sun (Cancer). Clearly,
Biden didn’t hire a “yes-Lady” to be his V.P.—she will actively disrupt or seek
to influence his actions (her Eris also quincunxes Biden Mars)
and the status quo (Sibly Sun) when she sees
fit. For the most part, Biden should be in theoretical accord with her, but he
will also tend to agree with certain elements of the status quo (connections by
and to his Uranus-Saturn), so she may be charged with “nudging” him into a
mindset that (for want of a better word) we’ll call progressive. Harris will likely want to pursue policies that will
influence the American mindset in regards to Sibly 3rd house issues,
like education and media (Sibly Uranus rules the Aquarius
3rd house).
Harris Saturn (Rx, Aquarius) conjoins Sibly
Moon (Aquarius) and opposes Biden Chiron and Harris Mars (both Leo). Not
only do these aspects feel quite significant and powerful, but they have the
potential of becoming the hallmark of the Biden-Harris governing “style.” Significantly,
Biden’s
12th house Mercury-Sun-Venus (Scorpio) gathering t-squares
the Aquarius-Leo oppositions—in other words, here’s where their
joint efforts will meld to have the greatest impact on the grass-roots level (Sibly
Moon). We’ve been used to Trump’s belligerent, self-glorifying Mars
(Leo) dominating the Sibly Moon by opposition (chart not
shown), but his Mars didn’t have the disciplined counter-balance of a dignified
Saturn
(Rx, Aquarius) turning that influence into concrete results.
This joint Biden-Harris t-square may demand a lot
of the American people, but those who step up to the challenge will probably
see results. Both have points that tie into Sibly Mars (Gemini): Biden’s
Mercury by quincunx and MC (Virgo) by square, and Harris’s by sextile
and trine, suggesting that they will both “have our backs,” in
terms of defense issues. Some people feel that both of their careers have
demonstrated an overzealous “law and order” approach, but here that seems to be
focused in a helpful direction.
Harris Neptune (Scorpio) conjoins Biden
Mars-Mercury and trines Sibly Sun. Harris will likely influence Biden’s
thinking with the transformative ideals of her Neptune generation.
Overcoming racial injustice in our times shouldn’t be considered “radical,” of
course—considering the karmic passage we’re experiencing with Pluto’s
return to our Sibly Pluto, I’d say her idealism is
timely and that deep systemic change is long overdue.
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| Facebook and other platforms need to keep working to exclude misinformation. |
Final thoughts
Obviously, there is far more that could be said about these
charts, but there’s plenty of time during the next few months to explore some
issues more deeply. I suggested earlier that the generational concerns that
have so driven Kamala Harris in her career may provide a “bridge” between Biden
and the presidency—I expect that will be a topic covered by at least one more post. We will have time
to judge for ourselves how they individually, and as a team, stand up to the “leadership”
qualities we discussed earlier.
Because our times are so hyper-Neptunian, however, my
suggestion is that we judge them
directly by their words and deeds, rather than through biased filters like social media. These brave
individuals (running for office takes crazy
bravery these days, if you ask me) are not digitized images on a screen—they’re
real flesh and blood people who deserve respect, not slander, distortion and defamation.
But, as I’m sure you’ve noticed, the gloves are off and
Trump’s favorite weapon—misinformation—is
flowing freely and coming at everyone from all different directions, so those
who want to judge the candidates objectively need to batten down our mental/perceptual
“hatches” for the storm ahead. Whatever our decisions, they should be our decisions, based on our own sound
analyses of the various candidates’ records, ideas and behavior.
According to The
Atlantic’s David Frum, the GOP agenda is being tucked away and not publicly
published this convention season. It’s become known to reporters, however,
which is (IMHO) a good thing, because we need to know these things to make
decisions. On that note, I will leave you with Frum’s
article and a chance to peruse the GOP platform for yourself.
Stay well, be safe!
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; see
the “Publications” tab on the home page for her two most recent longer publications,
now available as e-books on Amazon.
For
information about individual chart readings, contact: robertsonraye@gmail.com.
© Raye Robertson 2020. All
rights reserved.
[1]
Fox, Matthew. The Tao of Thomas Aquinas:
Fierce Wisdom for Hard Times, iUniverse, Kindle Edition, p. 110.
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