Astrology Lessons US Elections 2016
By Raymond Merriman
Lesson One - The Birth Time Issue
It was only two weeks ago (October 28) that I wrote in this column the following words: “Now one final point to make. If Hillary is born at 2:18 AM, then Saturn has been transiting over her natal Nadir (4th house cusp), back and forth, due to its retrograde motion, since January 2016. This is the only chart of the three (that astrologers have been using) where this 29-year cyclical condition is present. The importance of this cannot be underscored in the study of astrology, for Saturn crossing the Nadir, is symbolically a low point in one’s outer life. It is a time of great challenges and personal dilemmas, where accountability is demanded for one’s prior actions and decisions. Saturn is the time keeper. It measures where you are in your station in life, according to where it is transiting in the chart. The higher it is in the chart, the higher the person is in his/her life cycle, generally speaking (other factors must also be considered, but by itself, this is the primary measurement used to ascertain that status). The lower it is the chart, the more difficult it is to attain what you want in terms of outward success – but it can be done, as long as one is fully accountable for their past actions and decisions. There is no escaping accountability when Saturn is strong by transit like this. By itself, it may not denote a loss in the election. However, as a forecasting tool, it is my opinion that if she losses the election, the time of 2:18 AM will have to be considered worthy of future consideration, more so than the other times of birth that are being used….”
Given that there were two other more popular birth times (8:02 AM and 8:00 PM) ascribed to Hillary Clinton, based on her conversations with astrologers, and the source of the third – an alleged birth certificate citing of 2:18 AM – being attacked as not credible by many astrologers, the judgement was made to under weigh the 2:18 AM birth time. Yet, as noted here, that time of birth would have to be given much more credibility if HRC lost, which she did. Unfortunately, having this information now, post-election, will not be of much future use. Her career in national politics is probably history.
Lesson 2 - The 16-Year Republican and US Dollar Cycle
For the past two years, I have highlighted the 16-year crest cycle in the U.S. Dollar correlating with a victory by the Republican candidate (1952, 1968, 1984, 2000), and 16-year cycle low correlating with the election of a Democrat (1944,1960, 1976, 1992, and 2008). That cycle seemed to be related to who would benefit most by the selection of each candidate. During the 16-year crest cycle, it was usually the case that a Republican candidate would support policies favorable to multi-national corporations and Wall Street, which benefitted from a lower dollar (making USA goods more affordable in world trade). In this election, it was evident that multi-national corporations and Wall Street were supporting Hillary Clinton, even though she was Democrat, perhaps because Donald Trump was supporting the undoing of several trade agreements with other countries. He was spouting a line of trade protectionism, which could be harmful to multi-national corporations. Thus, it seemed as if the dynamics behind this cycle were reversed this year – Clinton and Democrats, not the Republicans, were more likely to support a falling Dollar. This became more evident in the spring, when the Federal Reserve Board began to shy away from its earlier narrative that it would raise its short-term rates in 2016. When it delayed raising rates as they indicated earlier in the year, the Dollar began to fall instead of rally. It appeared that the 16-year cycle crest in the Dollar would be broken this time, and a falling Dollar would support Clinton, not Trump. That situation then began to change in mid-October, when the Dollar rallied and broke above its downward trendline, indicating that indeed it would be testing or making new highs within its normal historical time band. In this case, that will be January 2017 +/- 6 months.
In retrospect, I overanalyzed this factor (did I mention I have Virgo rising?). I gave too much weight to reasons behind a 16-year Dollar rally, rather than giving the more appropriate weight just to the cycle itself.
Lesson 3- Republicans are from Mars - Democrats from Venus
One of the major factors I considered was the synastry between the charts of the USA and that of the candidates. Hillary Clinton and Tim Kaine had their natal Sun in early water signs, making a grand trine to the USA Venus/Jupiter conjunction in early Cancer, another water sign. The Democrats would tap into a Venus/Jupiter dynamic with the American public. Venus and Jupiter are known as “benefics” in astrology, which are considered very favorable, even “lucky.” Clinton’s campaign slogan was “Stronger Together,” which reflects the partnering and sharing qualities of Venus. Donald Trump and his running mate Mike Pence are both Geminis, with their Sun in close conjunction to the USA Mars. Republicans in this election were thus from Mars, which is a “malefic” in the study of astrology. The Republicans would tap into the collective Mars dynamics of the public mood. Mars pertains to anger, combativeness, war-like acts, but also the desire to be first and best. Surely Trump’s path to Election Day was fraught with dissention and combativeness (even within his own party), but his motto was “Make America Great Again,” which also reflects the positive (albeit competitive) qualities of Mars. My error in judgement was assuming that, given the choice, most Americans would vote for the conciliatory path and “keep the peace.” They would choose the Venus/Jupiter dynamic over the “demand for change” dynamic of Mars. I was wrong in that judgement of my fellow Americans. They wanted to “Rid the Swamp of Corruption in Washington, D.C.” (another Trump slogan that resonated greatly in the American psyche), more than they wanted to keep the status quo.
Lesson 4 - The Power of Progressions
Donald Trump was born June 14, 1946, 10:54 AM, in Queens, NY. His Ascendant is 29° 55’ Leo, conjunct the fixed star of Regulus, known as the “Regal Star” of the King. By a forecasting method known to astrologers as “Secondary Progressions” (based on “a day of life is equal to a year of life”), Trump’s progressed Sun has moved from 22° Gemini to his ascendant in late Leo, and also conjunct Regulus. Even though his progressed Sun is now at 0° 15’ Virgo, it is still within one-degree orb (only 20,’ or one-third of a degree) of conjunction to his Leo ascendant.
The progressed Sun in conjunction to one’s natal ascendant denotes a time of great recognition and success. This was the basis for some astrologers correctly forecasting that Trump would win, such as Robert Thibodeau of Mayflower Books, in Berkley, Michigan. In my own judgement, I incorrectly thought that just the mere fact Trump had so much publicity and recognition running for the office itself was enough to qualify this progression. Plus, on the day of the election, the progressed Sun was already in Virgo, which I thought would weaken its force. It did not. In fact, he grew stronger in the days leading up to the election. Thus, my underweighting of this factor provided yet another learning experience: never underestimate the power of a progressed Sun over one’s natal ascendant, right until its end. The progressed Sun on the ascendant is much more than recognition. It can actually result in victory.
Now we wait and see if it also means his leadership is capable of unifying the country and healing the wounds that presently divide us. These matters will be discussed in the Forecast 2017 Book.
There are many more lessons that were learned from this election, both astrologically and psychologically, not to mention spiritually. However, the main takeaway from this week’s election is that astrology works fine. It is still one of the most valuable timing tools known to humankind. The problem is not astrology, but rather the astrologer and his/her weighting of astrological factors examined in the course of making a forecast. Unfortunately, astrologers – like pollsters – are human, and prone to occasionally make errors in judgment. However, the rate of success in forecasting by a well-trained and credible professional astrologer is still very, very high. Additionally, most of you are interested in the timing of financial markets, and in this regard, no one can complain about this year’s stellar market timing performance. Just like markets, everything in life moves in cycles, and the correlation between cycles of planetary movements to cycles in human activity remains as valuable and insightful as ever. It is one of the things of life that will never change. How can it, if we are connected to the Infinite?
Disclaimer & State of Purpose
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