Alex's Asteroid Astrology

The Republican National Convention begins on July 15^th in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and the timing couldn’t be more perfect.  That date just happens to coincide with the precise triple conjunction of Mars, Uranus and Fixed Star Algol, all at 26 Taurus, conjoined the 24 Taurus Midheaven of Donald J. Trump, who will accept the GOP 2024 presidential nomination during the convention.  Mars denotes resentment, anger, hatred and violence; Uranus suggests volatility, controversy, iconoclasm, fanaticism and insurrection; Algol forms the severed head of Medusa in the constellation Perseus, denoting both literal decapitation and metaphorically “losing one’s head.”  If you can think of a better celestial thumbnail sketch of the modern GOP and its felon champion, I’d like to hear it.

Some have suggested actual violence at the convention in Milwaukee, which Donald Trump termed “a horrible city” mere weeks before his coronation there, stemming from this triple conjunction.  That seems to me unlikely, since the GOP’s anger and viciousness is currently reserved for their opponents.  But it’s certainly remarkably apt symbolism for what makes the Party tick these days, with “retribution” the lead plank on the 2024 platform, as the nominee himself.  And it could well be a harbinger of political violence to come in this election cycle or its aftermath.  And the symbolism of losing one’s head, with the GOP in thrall to a man who has been judged civilly liable for fraud and sexual abuse, and convicted on 34 criminal counts, seems spot on.

Republican ire will be focused on incumbent President Joe Biden, as portrayed by asteroid Bida 32014 (closest celestial referent to Biden) at 19 Taurus, conjoined Mars/Uranus/Algol.  But there may be a seed pointing to the ultimate outcome of this contest, with Bida also conjunct asteroid TRIUMF 14959 at 17 Taurus.  Not a great foreshadowing, to have your rival’s PNA (Personal-Named Asteroid) conjunct an image of ultimate, resounding success, at the moment you officially become his opponent.

The conjunction also sits at the fulcrum of a T-Square, squared asteroid MANIAC 228029 at 19 Aquarius, and Mercury at 19 Leo, accompanied by asteroids Nemesis 128 and Niobe 71 at 25 and 26 Leo.  MANIAC needs no cosmic introduction, simply referring to an out-of-control nutjob; Mercury rules conventions, speeches, party platforms, delegates and votes; Nemesis indicates vengeance and retribution; Niobe is noted for overweening pride.  So, we have an image of a bunch of haters (Mars) and fanatics (Uranus) who have lost their heads (Algol) over a prideful (Niobe) lunatic (MANIAC) who is campaigning (Mars) on a platform (Mercury) of retribution (Nemesis) and rebellion (Uranus).  Yeah, that fits.

Further celestial confirmation of the RNC theme comes in the form of a Grand Cross anchored by asteroid Narcissus 37117 at 7 Scorpio, which comes to its direct station that very day, making its energies an embedded factor in the convention.  Narcissus denotes self-obsession to the point of mania, an inability to respond to others as equals, or even recognize their existence.  I must confess, I’m at a loss as to whom that might refer, but regardless, Narcissus is joined by asteroid Hybris 430 at 3 Scorpio, opposes asteroid Washingtonia at 7 Taurus, and squares Venus with asteroid Whitehouse at 4 and 10 Leo, and Pluto exact with asteroid Kassandra 114 at 1 Aquarius, accompanied by asteroid America at 9 Aquarius. 

America, Washingtonia, and Whitehouse are obvious symbols of the US, its capital, and the presidency.  Hybris is named for the Greek goddess of arrogance, exaggerated pride or self-confidence (and the root of our word “hubris”).  “Pride goeth before a fall,” as the Good Book says, perhaps reflecting the ancient Greek karmic tag-team of Hybris and Nemesis:  Hybris (pride) would set up mortals by evoking an extreme sense of self-importance, and Nemesis (ruin) would come along and knock them down to size. 

Kassandra relates to issues of credibility – is this individual trustworthy and reliable, honest and believable?  Pluto rules criminal activity, among other things.  Venus evokes our values:  the beliefs and principles we prize and esteem.  And indeed, the nation’s (America) values (Venus) are being tested in its search for its next leader (Whitehouse) and the form of government (Washingtonia) we condone going forward.  Will we choose the less-than-credible (Kassandra) felon (Pluto), so arrogantly (Hybris) focused on himself (Narcissus)?  Surely, having Narcissus at station for the renomination of the greatest narcissist ever to occupy the Oval Office is no more than cosmically apt, and the importance of that act for the nation is crystal clear.  But the dire symbolism doesn’t end there.

With the 23 Cancer Sun is asteroid Apophis 99942 at 22 Cancer, named for the ancient Egyptian personification of pure evil, representing chaos and darkness.  Now there’s a cautionary tale if ever there was one!  The RNC is imbued, in its very essence, with the spirit of malevolence and malignity, confusion and disorder.  Also here is asteroid Nike 307 at 17 Cancer, named for the Greek goddess of victory.  The implication of this triumvirate is that Republicans (the Sun, as the focus of the day) are focused on winning (Nike) at all costs, whatever vile, despicable, awful thing (Apophis) they need to do to ensure victory.

The solar stellium is also involved in a Grand Cross, opposed centaur Hylonome 10370 at 26 Capricorn, squared TNO Eris 136199 with centaur Chiron 2060 and asteroid Fortuna 19, at 25, 23 and 20 Aries respectively; and asteroid Sisyphus 1866 at 28 Libra.  Let’s start with the last one first. 

Sisyphus is named for the denizen of Hades who, in expiation of his crimes on earth, is doomed to forever roll a rock uphill, only to have it roll back down again, thus necessitating an eternal repetition of the action.  It refers to multiple repeat efforts, and gives us the “political déjà vu” sense that we’ve been here, done that, in Donald Trump’s third consecutive GOP presidential nomination.  The only president with more nominations is FDR (with four), though Thomas Jefferson, Andrew Jackson and Grover Cleveland were also nominated thrice consecutively. Jefferson and Jackson both failed in their first attempts, Cleveland won his first and last, but lost in the middle.  Donald Trump differentiates himself in that the others all won the popular vote as well as the Electoral College, a feat which The Donald has yet to accomplish (and likely never will).

Eris is named for the Greek goddess of strife and discord, representing populations which feel marginalized, excluded, disrespected and resentful, much like the MAGA crowd that fawns on Trumps’s every utterance.  Pervasive discontent is the theme here.  Chiron indicates a maverick, as well as an incurable wound.  Trump is certainly the former, breaking every rule and shattering every norm he can; we can only hope that his wounding applies just to the GOP, and not the country as a whole.  Fortuna is named for the goddess of fortune, but her wheel spins both ways.  Sometimes we’re up, sometimes we’re down.  And this election will have an inverse outcome regardless – inevitably, if Trump wins, America loses, and vice versa.  Fortuna is playing both red and black on the roulette wheel here.  Hylonome is named for the loyal wife of Cyllarus, who after his death, impales herself on his spear, committing suicide in an excess of grief.   Again we see echoes of the staunch Republican support for Trump, risking suicide for the Party in running him again, and the great grief they may experience in his loss.

Donald Trump is named specifically in this self-destruction narrative, as asteroid Donn 4689 at 2 Pisces, conjoined Hylonome and also Damocles 5335, that doom hanging overhead, about to descend at any moment.  Again we have a dual image – on the one hand, of Trump (Donn) as the looming threat (Damocles) to the nation if he wins; and on the other, of great legal peril to himself if he loses, and the criminal cases pending against him go forward.

Consider also the placement of that Sun/Apophis/Nike conjunction in relation to Donald Trump’s birth chart.  With natal asteroids Nemesis and Bilk at 16 Cancer, and asteroid Karma exact with Saturn at 23 Cancer, the Con-in-Chief (Bilk) faces a comeuppance (Nemesis) for his prior acts (Karma) of fraud and deception (Bilk) in career matters and the presidency (both symbolized by Saturn), even as he appears triumphant (Sun) in the spotlight (Sun) of his third nomination.

Trump is also seen as asteroid Troemper 28130, his primary celestial referent.  At 17 Gemini, Troemper is finishing up its nine-week engagement with Jupiter, planet of politics and luck, now at 11 Gemini, a period which brought Trump favorable rulings from the US Supreme Court on presidential immunity, an overperformance at the first presidential debate, and now the GOP nomination.  But the luck starts to run out as July becomes August, with Troemper left with only asteroid Karma 3811 as its traveling companion, a point which has been focused on calling him to account for his misdeeds as they journeyed together for the past two years.  Currently a bit extended, with Karma out in front at 25 Gemini, Troemper will catch up with Karma in time to be just two degrees apart by November’s election.

In the meantime, Troemper is also getting some attention from an exact pairing of Saturn with centaur Nessus, both at 19 Pisces, in square.  Saturn is career and the office of the presidency itself, so it’s logical to find it connected to Trump’s celestial stand-in as he accepts the nomination.  But it’s also representative of restriction, loss, punishment and penalty.  Nessus is the cosmic signature of “men behaving badly,” typically in a sexual context (an arena wherein Trump finds no rival), but more broadly as a marker of anything unseemly, unacceptable or taboo (such as promising to be a dictator on day one if elected, or a national bloodbath in response to a loss).

All in all, a remarkably vivid celestial rendering of the facts on the ground for the 2024 RNC, painted in broad brush strokes as well as fine detail.