NeptuneCafe

Are Fox and Trump Heading for Divorce?

Last week numerous media reports pointed out the absurdity of Trump’s “peace deal.” Only hosts at Fox News praised Trump with comments like “President Trump is a master at coercive diplomacy.” However, some of Fox’s high-profile celebrities have recently broken with Trump, putting some cracks in the Fox-Trump alliance of the past ten years.

Fox News began shaping the US political dialogue on October 7, 1996 when it began broadcasting at 6:00 am. The horoscope set for this founding moment reveals the powerful forces at play as well as the various scandals, conspiracy theories, and criticisms about its objectivity. Mercury conjunct the Libra Ascendant characterizes Fox as a self-proclaimed “fair and balanced” news network.

Saturn in Aries sits on the 7th house cusp of “others” or the “general public.” Saturn’s symbolism here is naturally associated with Fox’s relatively conservative and older demographic. And Saturn has a critical side, which is regularly manifested as complaints about Fox’s lack of objectivity. Many refer to Fox News as the GOP’s propaganda arm.

Fox News has a melodramatic Moon-Mars conjunction in Leo which has shaped its presentation from Day One. It uses glossy news programming, flashy graphics, and celebrity-like personalities to bring the news. Imminent conflict brought by shady liberal politicians completes their entertaining news segments. The entertainment side over-stepped when it falsely claimed that Dominion Voting Systems was committing fraud in the November 2020 election. Dominion filed a $1.6 billion lawsuit and in April 2023 Fox settled for $787 million.

Despite the lawsuits and its apparent lack of objectivity, Fox News continues to be the leading cable news channel. Its influence over American politics can be seen when comparing this chart to the US horoscope. For example, Mercury at 27º Virgo is precisely trine the US Pluto, the ruler of the Scorpio Rising chart. The Moon-Mars conjunction at 16º Leo falls right on the US Midheaven at 16º Leo. Neptune at 24º Capricorn is exactly opposite the US Mercury at 24º Cancer, suggesting the slanted news.

Fox’s Libra Sun indicates the news network’s interest in partnering with politicians who can influence American political institutions. Transiting Saturn is now in the 7th house of partners and will turn retrograde in July at 14º Aries where it directly challenges Fox’s Libra Sun, a doubled message concerning the Fox-Trump alliance.

Some Fox opinion-makers are now openly declaring their frustration with Trump. For example, Fox News host Mark Levin commented about the Iran peace deal: “I have asked for days, why can't we, the people, see the damn MOU [memo of understanding]? Honestly, I've never seen anything like this. If it is a great outcome for peace, then release it.”

The above is an excerpt from this week’s NewsScope. Get the full story here:
https://www.neptunecafe.com/newsscope

The Finger of Fate in Trump’s Solar Return

A popular technique in the astrologer’s toolbox is the Solar Return. The highest priority is given to the most angular placements, the tightest aspects, and links to other relevant charts. This Return features Saturn at 13º Aries, which is exactly square the US Sun at 13º Cancer (as described here last week). In fact, when the minutes of a degree are added in, the orb is only 0º02’ and marks a clear and serious challenge to his presidency.

The most angular placement in Trump’s Solar Return is Uranus at 2º Gemini — only two degrees from the Descendant. Uranus in the house of “others,” and especially when it’s angular, makes partners and allies unreliable, unpredictable, and capable of unexpected or unwelcome changes. Uranus is associated with independence, which is not something Trump’s MAGA movement needs to advance their agenda.

Two aspects in this chart have an orb of 0º00’ and they thereby set the tone for the coming year. The first one is Mars at 19º Ta**us octile (semisquare) Neptune at 4º Aries. Mars is located in the 6th house, which we generally associate with health and one’s daily work activities. This action planet is slowed down, spaced out, and pre-occupied by its octile to Neptune.

The health side of this placement is emphasized by the other 0º00’ orb aspect, which is Black Moon Lilith at 19º Sagittarius quincunx Hygeia at 19º Cancer. Although these placements are not yet widely utilized by most astrologers, their precise quincunx and Lilith’s location in the first house make them relevant.

Hygeia is the fourth largest asteroid and naturally associated with the health profile. Lilith’s influence suggests the hidden health problems that lurk under the surface and that belie Trump’s claim that his health is “perfect.” Hygeia is only two degrees from conjoining Mercury in Cancer, so mental health enters the picture. And these three are all closely aspecting Mars in the 6th house, underscoring Mars’s association with health.

Altogether, with Mars sextile Hygeia and Mercury, and these three quincunx Lilith rising, we have a Yod, an unstable configuration that influences Trump’s health in immediate circumstances and over the coming year. Lilith is at the apex of this uneasy shape, often referred to as the Finger of Fate. In Sagittarius, Lilith advances or regresses according to one’s moral actions.

The above is an excerpt from this week’s NewsScope. Get the full picture here:
https://www.neptunecafe.com/newsscope

Stephen Colbert’s Ending and New Beginning

Stephen Colbert will likely be a major news item over the coming three weeks as he heads into the final episode of CBS’s The Late Show on May 21. The backstory here is that CBS was bought by Paramount which was sued for $20 billion by the Trump administration over a 60 Minutes segment that favored Kamala Harris. Paramount settled the lawsuit for a mere $16 million on condition that Colbert be fired.

As described last year* when Colbert’s firing was first announced, his birth time is set for 10:02 pm which gives him 16º Sagittarius Rising and 5º Libra at the Midheaven. The Midheaven, as naturally associated with his professional standing, is under major activation now as his long-standing job as late-night comedian comes to an end.

The primary indicator is transiting Saturn. The Saturn cycle is a well known, predictable cycle among astrology enthusiasts. Professional peaks arrive when transiting Saturn is near the Midheaven, while professional endings and new beginnings correspond to Saturn’s arrival at the nadir, the 4th house cusp. Over the past year, transiting Saturn has gone back and forth across his 4th house cusp as it opposed his Midheaven.

However, he’s not going out without major national attention and an unknown number of proposals for his next gig. This is evident with transiting Pluto’s station at 5º Aquarius, which forms a very favorable trine to his Midheaven. And then this coming September, transiting Uranus reaches 5º Gemini and turns retrograde, also making a rare exact trine to his Midheaven.

In fact, transiting Uranus and Pluto trine each other over the next two years while simultaneously trine his Libra Midheaven. This makes an auspicious Air Grand Trine, suggesting he will be doing a lot more with his comedic talents than co-authoring a film sequel to The Lord of the Rings. Uranus and Pluto, as outer planets, keep one interacting with the collective in some way.

Colbert doesn’t openly criticize Paramount’s executives since he’s thankful for the 21 years he’s spent with CBS. He says he’s looking forward to regrouping from the grueling fast pace of producing a nightly show. However, the tension between him and Trump is evident when viewing recent developments in his horoscope.

The 7th house represents “other people” which can be partners or open enemies. Colbert has his Moon in that house at 24º Gemini, which happens to be closely conjunct Trump’s Gemini Sun. Then note the importance of Venus, which gains significance by being the ruler of his Ta**us Sun and Libra Midheaven. Natally, Venus is also in the 7th house, but by secondary progression it’s been retrograding through Gemini.

That all changed in October 2022 when his progressed Venus stopped at 20º Gemini and began slowly moving forward. Normally, we think of Venus as a beneficial placement, but in the 7th house, and due to its proximity to Trump’s Sun-Uranus conjunction, it readily symbolizes Trump as a target for his jokes.

Colbert was born with Black Moon Lilith at 13º Sagittarius and only three degrees from conjoining his Ascendant. This Lilith is what gives Colbert the comedian’s edge of referring to hidden or dark truths without actually voicing them. The reference makes us squirm uncomfortably until we recognize the irony, the hypocrisy, and laugh to release the tension.

By secondary progression, as Colbert stages his last monologue, Black Moon Lilith will be at 20º Sagittarius, or exactly opposite his progressed Venus. That puts his progressed Venus under immense stress, something that has been building up ever since Trump was re-elected. So Trump got him fired. But don’t be concerned about Colbert’s next performance. He’s got an Air Grand Trine to inspire and move him.

* see NewsScope: https://www.neptunecafe.com/nsc081125

Transiting Pluto’s Square to Melania’s Sun

Melania Trump’s April 9 formal statement at the White House was completely out of character and caught most everyone by surprise. She just doesn’t voluntarily bring up the one scandal that her husband’s team has been obsessively trying to bury. A look at Melania’s horoscope may shed some light on what’s happening here. A 7:10 pm birth time makes good astrological sense since it puts her Sun-Saturn conjunction in Ta**us right on the 7th house cusp of partners.

This business-first combination describes her marriage as a negotiated partnership based on a mutually rewarding pre-nuptial agreement. It also describes her personal identity (Sun) as completely wrapped up in her husband’s ambition and professional role. Yet her Sun is also closely quincunx (150º) Uranus, which drives her toward complete personal freedom and independence. Her conscious ego is then faced with the responsibilities and obligations to Donald pitted against her interest in doing her own thing, in having her own lifestyle.

Currently, the lead astro-event is transiting Pluto heading into a square to Melania’s Sun in Ta**us. Before making the exact square, Pluto turns retrograde when it stations on May 5 at 5º30’ Aquarius. This is only 0º02’ from the trine to natal Uranus. Still, the orb of the square to her Sun is tight and she obviously already feels it. Transiting Pluto squaring a 7th house Sun is bound to be highly disruptive to her personal relationships — and especially to her marriage.

Pluto turns direct this coming October and then will be squaring her Sun off and on through December 2028. Quite possibly, her marriage will unravel during this interval, which lasts through the end of Donald’s term in office. Also, this transit may be projected onto her husband and mark his unraveling in office. A seventh house Sun-Saturn conjunction can play out in her partner’s life, which she then experiences vicariously.

Apparently, at the center of Melania’s discomfort is the former model, Amanda Ungaro. Stay tuned for this developing scandal….

The above is an excerpt from this week’s NewsScope. Get the full picture here:
https://www.neptunecafe.com/newsscope