A Second President Clinton?
It’s a pleasure once again to have Basil Fearrington as guest astrologer here in the Essays section of the website. Basil’s reputation as teacher and consultant shines throughout the nation. He is a leading astrologer indeed. Basil resides in Philadelphia and can be reached at BFearr@aol.com.
Natal Overview
Hillary Clinton was born on October 26, 1947 in Chicago, Illinois. For many years, her birth time was thought to be 8:00 P.M. CST, but research and discovery by astrologer Frances McEvoy revealed an error in that birth time, and made the correction to 8:00 A.M. CST (see The Astrologers Newsletter, Feb/Mar 1998, Vol. XVII, No. 6, Boston Astrological Society).
The first impression of Hillary’s horoscope reveals a Southern Hemisphere emphasis, suggesting the sense of being shaped, molded, and potentially victimized by the environment, by life experience. Indeed! Under most circumstances, this emphasis manifests in a search for identity away from the home and out into the world because there is little or nothing from the formative years of development to anchor the identity. –However, in Hillary’s case, we do not find this to be true. She is a powerful composite of the tough love of both parents and was strongly influenced in constructive ways by them.
We sense the importance of the early home influences through the bucket handle-like Moon in the 4th, and we can see the ministerial sternness of her father through the symbolism of Saturn’s square to Mercury-rx, ruler of the 10th. You can feel in Hillary the strategic orientation of her thought processes, the seriousness and depth working with a second mental agenda, all relating to the influence of her father. She really does need to know everything!
This seriousness of mind combines with a lack of the Earth element (therefore the necessity to dot the i’s and cross the t’s of others in order to feel inner stability) to reflect a rather dry, cold, aloof presentation of Self (Saturn is exactly square the Ascendant), clearly lacking the charisma of her husband. It is important to note that a key dimension of the Moon as a singleton planet is that there is frequently a discomfort or unwillingness to express emotion openly (echoed by the Saturn squares to Ascendant, Mercury, and Venus, ruler of her 7th).
The Sun-Moon blend shows us that there is a focal energy to control things that is projected in a personality that needs to be sensitive, idealistic and compassionate. She is able to depend on her inner world during times of trouble and stress. The intuitive sense is well developed, especially with regards to people. She has a good “feel” for people. All of this is projected through the tough, control-needing image that precedes Mrs. Clinton’s reputation.
An important dimension of the sensitive, idealistic Pisces Moon is the martyr complex that is adopted when there are hurts and pains. We see the Pisces dimensions intensified through the Uranus square to the Moon, which certainly reflects her need to project her idealistic personality individualistically. (As an example, early on in her husband’s political career as Governor of Arkansas, Mrs. Clinton, as the First Lady of Arkansas had to be convinced to use “Clinton” as a last name, preferring the use of Rodham instead. She did not want to acquiesce to that tradition, nor did she want to adopt the kind of dress and hair fashions that are expected from that position).
The Pluto-Mars conjunction is a little too far out of orb to square the Ascendant but in this case, we know the square is there. This woman is a tough fighter and you can feel it in her being. There is the attitude of getting back at the world; making it in a man’s world.
The most important factor about the Sun-Moon blend here is that the Sun is unaspected, peregrine, as Noel Tyl helpfully refers to it. When the Sun is unaspected, there is a disconnection, a dissociation complex that makes it difficult to achieve understanding, recognition. What happens here is that the Scorpio energies run away with everything to attract the recognition. This is the astrological symbol of so many of the less than positive things that have been associated with Hillary’s image. There is no question that she is a strong, intelligent, competent woman, but the charismatic presentation that comes so naturally and easily to her husband is simply not a part of her identity. It can easily be said that she has lived through his charisma. She has to work overtime to prove herself. People tend to see these efforts negatively. [Note that Saturn is square to Venus, ruler of the 7th).
The Sun’s 12th House, unaspected position in Scorpio reflects all of this perfectly, and, in co-rulership of the 9th House, we see the prominence of law, internationalism and academia as “proving grounds” for the dissociation complex (please note that the bucket handle Moon rules the 9th, providing yet another 9th House focus). We see all of this strongly echoed and emphasized by the unaspected Jupiter, final dispositor of the horoscope, rising at the Ascendant.
The relationship index in Hillary’s horoscope is extremely challenged! Venus rules the 7th and 11th Houses. It is uncomfortably placed in Scorpio and within the 12th House where it reflects relational needs that are often difficult to fulfill. Venus is squared by Pluto, Saturn, and Mars (Venus=Mars/Saturn=Saturn/Pluto), linking this relational tension to concerns of identity, worth, and sexuality. This suggests that there is a perspective on relationships that is difficult; a control (or controlling) factor, and probably, through it all, an overall tightness sexually. This latter point is corroborated by Mars’ rulership of the 5th House and Mercury’s rulership of the 8th House, squared by Saturn. Lastly, Neptune=Sun/Moon suggests deception and misunderstanding in relationships (Bill Clinton also has Neptune=Sun/Moon and a decidedly stronger, more comfortable sexual profile)!
Interestingly, we can see the difficult relationship-sexual profile being brought forward for all to see through AP=Venus/Mars=Venus/Pluto. Under normal circumstances, these pictures would suggest much passion being brought forward in one’s life but here, the natal situation of relationship difficulty is brought forward.
Projecting Ahead – Another President Clinton?
Bill and Hillary Clinton are, without question, the strongest forces in politics today for the Democratic Party. Bill obviously cannot become President again but Hillary certainly can. Will she run in the 2008 campaign and does she have a chance of winning if she does run? I am of the belief that this country has not progressed enough socially to elect a woman to be the President. However, what does astrology have to say about all of this?
If Hillary Clinton decides to run for President in the 2008 election, she will make the announcement in 2007 and the astrology would have to reflect the motivation to do so. It does!
The year begins with the very strong SP Moon square Saturn, always an aspect that, for an ambitious person, suggests a strong time of planning. The aspect is so strong that it encompasses a period that is six months before and after partile (January 2007). At the same time, the SP Moon will also cross her Descendant, a contact that is of major significance in reflecting major changes in one’s life. In addition, the SP Moon opposes Mercury, ruler of the 10th House, which is like shining a light on that area of her life. In my opinion, the decision to run for office will have been made and we will know about it early in 2007. It is important to note that transiting Saturn will be conjoining Chelsea’s Midheaven (February 27, 1980 at 11:24 PM, Little Rock, Ark.) at this time, certainly an indication of her own career goals but as well, an indication of a significant parental development. And Bill Clinton will experience his (second) Saturn-return at this time!
But there is a potential fly in the ointment of measurements as transiting Neptune begins its long transit square to Hillary’s Ascendant in April 2007. This is a very threatening measurement that suggests much regarding loss and debilitating potentials, especially when we consider that transiting Neptune will be a year away from opposing Chelsea’s Midheaven and will do so just before transiting Saturn opposes her Sun (things are as far away from what they should be as they can be).
This transit raises a lot of questions and thoughts. Will something occur in Chelsea’s life that is debilitating to Hillary personally but does not affect her professionally (Chelsea’s pregnancy, for example?) Or will Neptune work productively for Hillary since it is so well integrated (Nep=Sun/Moon=MC/ASC) in her horoscope. After all, Neptune was square her Midheaven when she became Senator of New York! For her, perhaps the Neptunian measurements refer to idealism coming out into the open victoriously, finally tying her into the world.
OR –and this is highly conjectural—we can see that Hillary’s relationship difficulties (now extended, of course, to the public at large) might be complicated soon by her affiliation with her husband! In other words, as her bid and plan for the presidency start to gather steam, will she run into enormous conflict with her husband and what he has to say behind the scenes or right out up front, with his image, with public supposing about her independence?
We must note that, in the Fall of 2005, Hillary will see SA Mars enter her stormy marriage: SA Mars=Sun/Moon. This is very serious. At the same time, transiting Neptune will oppose her Pluto-Mars energy focus, complicating it, adding confusion (Pluto rules the Ascendant) and square her Venus, ruler of the 7th; and transiting Pluto will square her Moon exactly and oppose her Uranus, promising an enormous upset of values, all focused on her sense of individuality and independence.
The question does arise here that Hillary could divorce her husband and achieve a powerful campaign thrust of “The Free Clinton!”
In my research for this essay, I found that Hillary’s life has been unusually responsive to Jupiter-Sun contacts (the two unaspected planets in her horoscope). SA Sun conjoined Jupiter in 1975 when she married Bill Clinton, for example. SA Jupiter will square Hillary Clinton’s Sun exactly in December, 2008, one month after the election! And we must note that transiting Saturn will have crossed her Midheaven just months before, suggesting a peak in the potentials of her ambitions.
These two measurements – the Jupiter-Sun arc and the Saturn transit, suggest a crowning achievement, a time of reward (transiting Jupiter will be square her Sun in the Inauguration month). If Hillary Clinton decides to run for President, and I think she will –and there will be lots and lots of strategies connected with that momentous, historical “first– her astrology suggests that she could very well be in the White House again. It would be the ultimate victory for a Sun that has tried to shine for an entire life. The astrology suggests that she can win if she chooses to run for President of the United States in 2008.