(11 August 2015) The race for the nomination for US Republican Party entered a new phase last weekend after the first televised candidates debate on Fox. The ten leading candidates participated in the debate but in the end it was all about Donald Trump, the outspoken real estate mogul and reality TV star who has unexpectedly emerged as the frontrunner in the polls. Despite widespread criticism for his comments, Trump’s combative exchanges with debate moderator Megyn Kelly seems to only have re-affirmed his role as the dominant candidate in the GOP race as his lead in the polls has widened even further. Clearly Trump’s message is resonating with many conservative Americans who feel angry about the state of the country and alienated from their own government.
Not only is Trump a party outsider and a loose cannon on many issues, the possibility that he could win the nomination would probably be bad news for Republicans since polls show that Trump does worse when matched head-to-head against the likely Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton compared with almost all other GOP candidates. Even worse, Trump has threatened to run as a third party candidate if he feels the GOP is not "treating him right". If Trump appears on the ballot as a third party candidate in the 2016 election, it would essentially guarantee a win for the Democrats as Trump would take votes away from the GOP nominee.
Astrology paints a simple but accurate picture of Donald Trump. Trump is blunt, impulsive, and assertive to a fault. Which planet describes those characteristics? Why it’s Mars, of course! Mars is the planet of action, the planet of the warrior, the planet of the executive. That is Donald Trump 100%. In his long-running reality TV series, The Apprentice, he became famous for his quintessential executive tag line: "you’re fired!" In his high-profile campaign to stop illegal immigration over the Mexico-US border, Trump bears a stronger resemblance to a military (Mars) officer than a politician. Diplomat he is not.
Not surprisingly, Trump was born with Mars rising in Leo. One of the basic rules of astrology is that planets near the Ascendant in the 1st house assume a greater importance in a person’s life and that is very much the case here with ‘The Donald’. Leo is the sign of the leader, with all the attendant royal arrogance and defensive egotism that goes along with it. In true Leonine fashion, Trump does not take criticism well, as his debate exchanges reveal. A Mars rising in Leo is one of the most egotistic placements one can imagine, and confirms Trump as a man who is impatient and needs to act — the sooner the better. There is little room for thoughtful reflection or finesse with such a person.
But he is not simply an aggressive and self-oriented person. He is also a materially successful person. His 10th and 11th houses are very strong. The 10th is associated with career and status and he has the Sun, Uranus and Rahu (North Lunar Node) there in Taurus. Rahu does very well in the 10th as this often fuels ambition, sometimes to an unhealthy degree. The Sun is doubly positive in Taurus since it is the lord of the 1st house (Leo). Any such 1/10 connections usually heighten career success. The Sun-Rahu-Uranus conjunction also receives a very helpful aspect from Jupiter in the 2nd house of wealth. He was born to succeed.
Interestingly, Trump’s Sun is exactly opposite the Moon in Scorpio. Trump was born on a Lunar Eclipse so that might be another reason why he has become such a singular figure in US culture. His Moon may be debilitated in Scorpio but that is more than canceled due to its dispositor Mars placed so strongly in the 1st house. Trump’s tendency to make off-handed remarks is further evidenced through his Moon-Ketu conjunction. This inclines him towards a more intuitive, non-deliberative approach to life, and this can contribute to an unpredictable and even unfathomable nature.
The 11th house represents gains and income and Trump has the lord of the 11th house Mercury in its own sign of Gemini. This kind of 11th house strength is commonly found in the horoscopes of people who usually get what they want as the 11th house is said to represent goals and wishes. It is also frequently found in individuals who have high incomes. This is clearly the case with Trump who is a billionaire, even if he has declared personal bankruptcy a few times along the way. Alas, his Saturn is in the 12th house of loss in a conjunction with Venus! He’s on his third wife now and this is another manifestation of 7th lord Saturn in the 12th which foretells multiple marriages.
Astrological Outlook
So what’s next for Donald Trump? Can he actually maintain this momentum? Much to the consternation of GOP elites, his debate remarks have not hurt him and in fact his lead has now increased in the polls. I think that much of his good fortune here is attributable to the transit of Jupiter through his 1st house and its conjunction to that all-powerful Mars. Transiting Jupiter entered his first house Leo in mid-July just as the Trump campaign really took off and he shot into the lead. The other hugely positive influence came from Venus, which stationed retrograde on the exact degree of Trump’s Ascendant at 6 Leo on July 25th. To be sure, Saturn is squaring his Mars at the moment so that may be one reason why he is coming under sustained attack from all sides. But amazingly, it has yet to knock him off his perch.
He has been running Rahu-Moon dasha since March 2014 so that could be another reason why his star is rising. Rahu is a very positive influence for career given its placement in the 10th house with the Sun and Uranus, opposite the Moon. The Moon itself is also very benefic since it is almost precisely full from the eclipse. Full Moons are quite auspicious, and that is even more the case here since the Moon is placed in Mars’ sign and Mars is rising in the Ascendant.
But Trump could see his fortunes suffer in September. According to the Krishnamurti ayanamsha, he will begin his Rahu-Mars dasha around September 13th. Mars is generally a good planet for Trump, but Mars will come under the double affliction of transiting Saturn and Mars in the second half of September. Saturn will conjoin his exact 4th house cusp while transiting Mars is due to conjoin its natal position on September 21st and then conjoin the Ascendant (and square Saturn) on September 26th. That looks like too much Mars, even for Mr. Trump. This time window may therefore coincide with a major dispute or conflict that produce unwanted outcomes. The next debate will be hosted by CNN on September 16th so that experience may be less positive for him. He may find himself further ostracized by the Republican Party, or he may come under increased attack for his extreme views. With the nodes, Rahu and Ketu, also sitting on the respective house cusps of the 2nd and 8th houses at that time, the whole September-October period looks negative for him.
They do not seem sufficiently negative for him to drop out of the race but he may lose his lead in the polls. I suppose it’s possible he could even be somehow removed or disqualified from the GOP nomination campaign, although I do not have a strong sense of how such a thing would manifest in a horoscope. I would not rule anything out during this difficult period, although I do think his campaign with continue in some form.
Trump is likely to enjoy a big boost towards the end of the year when transiting Jupiter stations retrograde at 29 Leo. This will align exactly with this Sun-Moon opposition. Unfortunately for Mr. Trump, this will occur a bit before the first primaries in early February. With Jupiter due to station on January 8th, it possible that he would get enough of a boost to help him win one of those early primaries in say, Iowa or New Hampshire. In fact, that is a possible time when we could say that Trump’s campaign may peak — assuming that it didn’t already peak in the Fox debate. March and April look more difficult so he may be forced to reconsider his future at that time. Whether he withdraws or starts a 3rd party campaign is hard to say. But his fortunes appear to decline significantly in that early spring period.
So probably there won’t be a President Trump, or even a Nominee Trump. But regardless of what happens, I have a feeling I will be discussing Donald Trump’s chart again in the near future.
