THE US PRESIDENTIAL DEBATE

I thought I'd stick my head in the lion's den and say something about American politics. Point one: very few people are able to be remotely impartial about Trump. There is so much to dislike and disapprove of about the man personally, that no-one looks below the surface to ask but what did he do as President? What are his policies now? In this respect he is a great challenge to one's ability to be objective. Would anyone like to have a go? It is much easier, and you will get far more approval from your peers, if you continue to froth at the mouth at the mere mention of the man's name. Caution: do not confuse your frothing at the mouth with insight into the Donald.

Kamala is still in her honeymoon period as a candidate, and further buoyed by the recent Democratic Convention. Everyone has an opinion on Trump, which is not likely to change much at this stage. We know, or think we know, him. We don't know Kamala very well.

Above is the chart for the first of their debates on 10th Sept. How does it impact the 2 candidates' charts? Keeping it simple, I would say that the strongest influence in the sky at that time is the Sun-Moon-Saturn-Jupiter mutable Grand Cross.

This impacts on Kamala personally through her Venus in Virgo. Virgo in a politician is popularity. With tr Saturn opposing it, she is going to have to earn it. Retrograde in Pisces, this is not an easy Saturn. It is good for collectives, but it needs to be channelled thoughtfully. Kamala's weakness is needing notes to speak from. She doesn't have that political instinct that knows what to say in the moment, which Trump has in spades, whether or not you agree with him. Her tactic of wanting the microphones unmuted is, I think, in the hope that Trump will keep interrupting her, and look bad for that. The lack of uninterrupted time in which to speak may also help conceal her difficulty with performing unscripted and thinking on her feet. If Trump wants to win, he will have to shut up sometimes. Like he had to with Biden because of the muted microphones, and it worked in his favour, as Biden had the space to undo himself.

The Grand Cross impacts powerfully on Trump’s chart, much more than it does Kamala’s, hard aspecting his Sun-Moon opposition in Gemini-Sag. In this case the Saturn is not so much about earning as reaping, because he is known and has a track record as President.

Saturn likes tangible evidence. Kamala is weak on specific policies. She comes out with generalities such as going forwards not backwards, and that her positions might have changed but her values haven’t. Trump can very specific, when he isn’t spewing aggressive soundbites.

My prediction is that this debate will favour Trump. If Kamala is referring to notes, Trump will make mincemeat of that. If she isn’t, he will be able to dance around her and make her look fumbling. This is reflected by Saturn tending to work against her, and in Trump’s favour.

As for the election itself, Uranus is impacting both the candidates’ charts as their main transit, as well as squaring the US Moon. This makes it very hard to predict. There could well be further unusual, unexpected events. We have already had the assassination attempt, and Biden stepping down. And whichever candidate is elected – and who is to say in this Uranian election if the candidates still will be Trump and Harris – they will have a rocky time as President, as Uranus continues to unsettle and divide and startle.