NewsScope; February 12, 2007. Former Mass-achusetts governor Mitt Romney (March 12, 1947) is expected to formally launch his presidential campaign this week, and then make the rounds to the early primary states North Carolina and New Hampshire. He joins top-tier Republican hopefuls Rudolph Giuliani (May 28, 1944; 11:52 am; New York, NY) and John McCain, and according to some pundits, is the GOP's best chance for keeping the White House.
However, from an astrological perspective, John McCain (August 29, 1936; 8:37 am, Panama City, Panama) seems the most likely to get the nomination in 2008. This conclusion is based on the theory that the winning candidate must have strong natal or progressed planets in aspect to the U.S. Moon. Without this vital link, a candidate just doesn't resonate with the American people or their security needs.
Neither Giuliani nor Romney has any natal or progressed planet in close aspect to the U.S. Moon, though both have compelling celestial dynamics that urge them forward. John McCain's natal Ceres at 25 degrees Scorpio is exactly square the U.S. Moon, while his Mars in Leo and near the U.S. Midheaven makes him a credible commander-in-chief, a quality Hillary Clinton will have trouble demonstrating.
More to the point, McCain's progressed Jupiter is now at 24 degrees Sagittarius, and by summer 2008 will have advanced to 25 degrees Sagittarius where it makes the vital link to the U.S. Moon. This aspect, unlike his 2004 venture, will bring him plenty of enthusiastic support, both in financial contributions and popular appeal. McCain will make a tough opponent in the national race.
McCain's birth time of 8:37 am shown here is rectified from the widely quoted and obvious ballpark figure of 9:00 am. Listed below are a few examples from McCain's personal history that justify the 8:37 am time, with attention paid to the angles. Abbreviations: T = transit, P2 = secondary progressed, while P3 = tertiary progressed. Orbs are given as minutes of a degree, with all being less than one degree:
On Jul 3, 1965, McCain married Carol Shepp, a model
T SU cnj MC
T UR sxt MC +18
P2 MC squ UR in 7th -07
P2 ME squ MC -19, cnj AS +53
P3 AS cnj PA
P3 MC quinc NN -22
Oct 26, 1967 - shot down, injured, POW
T NN squ PL +06
T PL cnj VE, ruling planet -54
P2 Vesta cnj MC -00
P2 MC cnj MA -38
P3 MC tri NN +07
P3 UR squ MA -00
Mar 15, 1973 - released
T PL quinc PF -01
P2 Vesta squ AS +05
P2 SU squ MC +22, cnj AS -50
P2 AS tri SA in 6th -67
P3 JU tri ME +11
P3 CE cnj PF -27
Apr 2, 1980 - divorced
T SU cnj DE +36
T SA cnj VE +38
T CH sxt MC +18
P2 MC cnj Juno -01
P2 AS cnj CE +25
P2 PF cnj SU +50
P3 JU opp Juno -12
P3 AS tri MO, sxt PL
May 1980 - married Cindy Hensley
similar to above, with
P3 Juno cnj JU
Nov 4, 1986 - first elected to Senate
T (SU tri JU) tri MC
P2 CE quinc MC -05
P2 (MO cnj AS) sxt ME
P2 MC tri NN -59
P3 CE sxt MC -08
P3 AS cnj MA -15
P3 MC quin JU -47
Nov 25, 2006 - announces exploratory committee
T Juno cnj AS -06
T UR tri MC -29
P2 AS oct Pallas -02
P2 (AS cnj CE) -18
P2 MC opp SA +21
For more on the importance of the U.S. Moon and Mars in Leo, please visit American Presidents
One way to test this 8:37 am birth time is to look at what was happening when he was shot down and captured during the Vietnam War, an event that arguably began the most important phase of his life. He spent 5 ½ years as a POW, including periods of torture, while he developed the survival skills and character that made him an American hero. The fateful incident took place on October 26, 1967. He was flying his 23rd bombing mission over North Vietnam, when he was shot down, severely injured, and captured.
At the time, his progressed (P2) Midheaven was conjunct his Mars in Leo when using the rectified 8:37 am birth time. McCain's Mars in Leo is under dynamic tension natally by the square to Uranus. This is what gives him his hot temper and impatience, and a compelling interest in dangerous or risky missions. Mars in Leo by itself is very favorable for presidential candidates, since 10 of our 42 presidents have this placement. It's a statistical anomaly that by itself validates the importance of astrology. Normally, one might expect three or four presidents to have Mars in Leo. Six would be at the extreme end of the bell-shaped curve, but ten is extraordinary.
Using the 9:00 am time, McCain's P2 Midheaven was at 17º Leo, where it makes no close aspects to his natal chart, except a wide sextile to Neptune – clearly not descriptive of this violent and earth-shattering event.
In late October 1967, transiting Pluto was conjunct McCain's 12th house Venus, which would be true for both the 8:37 am and 9:00 am charts. The heavy-duty hit from Pluto marked a life transition, putting him into the deepest pits of despair and solitude that are associated with the most traumatic 12th experiences. McCain's Venus is also under major natal stress by the conjunction with Neptune, opposition to Saturn, and the square to Chiron. Later in his life, this Venus placement would lead him into an extra-marital affair with Cindy Hensley, whom he married in April 1980 one month after he was divorced from his first wife. In 2008, he was accused of having an affair with lobbyist Vicki Iseman as transiting Uranus was conjunct his Saturn and opposing Venus.
John McCain's
8:37 am Birth Time
The official birth time for the Senator from Arizona is given as 9:00 am on August 29, 1936 in the Panama Canal Zone. This is what most astrologers use. However, 9:00 am is probably a rounded off number, and I've rectified that to 8:37 am. Comparing the charts set for 8:37 am and 9:00 am, the Ascendant shifts from 12º Libra to 18º Libra, while the Midheaven advances from 11º Cancer to 16º Cancer. The planets hardly move at all, and in both cases, Venus, the ruler of his chart, is found in the 12th house of imprisonment, secrets, and identifying with the larger collective.
A few other notable astro-events on October 26 verify the 8:37 am birth time. McCain's natal Vesta is in family-oriented, patriotic Cancer. His father and grandfather were both admirals, and John aspired to serve his country as they did. Vesta symbolizes this dedication, and when he was shot down, his P2 Vesta was exactly conjunct his Midheaven. Due to his celebrity status as the son of a high-ranking naval officer, he could have been released early, but he declined, wishing no special favors. This is characteristic of the duty and honor associated with Vesta progressed to his Midheaven during his stay at the Hanoi Hilton, as it was called by the American POWs.
McCain's P2 Moon was at 20º06' when he was shot down, only 0º02' from conjunct his Saturn. If one uses 9:00 am, the P2 Moon is at 20º20', which is 0º12' past the conjunction to Saturn. When working with life-changing events, such orbs are significant, and the applying, 0º02' makes the most sense, especially considering that as this P2 Moon aspect became exact, McCain was spit at, stomped on, and otherwise completely humiliated by the Viet Cong before being hauled off to prison.
McCain was finally released on March 15, 1973 as his P2 Sun was squaring his Midheaven and conjunct his Libra Ascendant. Visually, this astro-event makes abundant sense. His Sun had been hidden away in the 12th house, but now has progressed to the light of day (Ascendant), and he becomes recognized for his valor (Midheaven). Using the 9:00 am chart shows no activation of the all-important angles, as the P2 Sun is still in the 12th house and seven degrees (seven years) from reaching the Ascendant.
The material here is excerpted from an article published in the August 2008 issue of Dell Horoscope magazine
NewsScope, May 19, 2008. Several corre-spondents reported a new birth time for John McCain of 11 am. The source is his mother, as quoted in a political ad that ran during Mother's
Day. Until now, astrologers have been using a 9:00 am birth time, or something close to 9:00 am. The two-hour discrepancy changes his Ascendant from Libra to Scorpio. Which one is correct?
NewsScope for May 19, 2008. As one correspondent noted, McCain's 11 am birth time* means that all three presidential candidates have Scorpio Rising, which seems to validate the Scorpio Rising U.S. horoscope
used in this column. Frankly, I'm frightened by the prospect of an 11 am time, since that putshis Mars at the Midheaven, and I don't want to see our next president have the war planet at this angular position.
However, McCain's 92-year-old mother probably has a faulty memory; 9:00 am is likely closer to the correct time. Libra Rising is a people-pleaser, as when McCain described how he managed a comeback on the David Letterman Show: "Tell 'em what they want to hear, and sometimes tell 'em what they don't want to hear." The self-expression is other-oriented. And McCain shows dimples when he grins, another tell-tale sign of the Libra Ascendant.
When comparing a few of the key events in McCain's life to the 9:00 am horoscope, major outer planet transits and progressions don't activate the angles, as they should if the birth time is correct. So a number of astrologers – including myself – have used 9:00 am as a starting point to rectify his chart. I've come up with 8:37 am, which is explained in more detail on this page.
