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Bush and Rumsfiled: Folie à Deux

Nancy Lubar Sommers

On February 15, 2003, people joined hands across the globe to oppose an unjust war and to stand united against the policies of the British and American governments that support military intervention in Iraq. Like a bird leaving the nest for the first time and sailing through the air on its newfound wings, protesters felt the nascent magical power of a world united against aggression and greed. The exalted and intoxicating feeling of earthly consciousness awakening to a more evolved state was extraordinary. For many, this vision of humanity’s potential enlightenment will continue as a lamp in a dark world.

Despite the ten or so million world-wide protesters, however, the hard and cold reality of impending war remains, as well as the overbearing power of the Bush administration to bribe, threaten, and extort in pursuit of its will. The astrological aspect of relevance here is the Jupiter/ Neptune opposition that was exact on the weekend of the protest, and joined by the Moon during the actual event. Both the Moon and Jupiter acted to intensify and exaggerate the sublime qualities of Neptune on that unprecedented day.

Essentially, Neptune acts to dissolve the boundaries between self and other. As with all of the planetary energies, this archetype can manifest in many ways. Neptune can inspire an exalted feeling of union with the Divine or with an ideal or vision. It can call forth self-sacrifice for a larger goal, a self-abnegation for the greater good. Many great deeds have been inspired by such feelings. As long as one remembers the limiting structures of reality that frame human life, a transcendent vision can nourish the soul to greatness. The sense of union that touched so many on February 15 was such an experience. It was a seed moment fused with a utopian truth that will continue to germinate in our evolving consciousness until its time has come.

But sometimes Neptune manifests as the inability to differentiate reality from dreams, hopes, and fantasy. The boundary between real and unreal becomes blurred. Often deception becomes part of the picture, deception of self or others. The fantasy goal seems doable but is in reality impossible and no longer based in fact and practicality. It is seductive as it promises greatness in some form. In merging the self with this noble, but unrealistic aim, the Neptunian vision enhances the sense of self and can be a trap for unconscious self-aggrandizement. Eventually, the ignored limitations of reality (Saturn) will bring the high-flying Neptunian vision back to Earth, often with a rather distressing, deflating thump. Disillusionment and feelings of loss creep into the vacuum.

The heady, transcendent excitement of the Jupiter/ Neptune combination is central to the Bush/Rumsfeld relationship. If we look at the composite chart (calculated using the midpoint positions in the two birth charts) of the two men, we note a Jupiter /Neptune conjunction that is within minutes of exact at 20 Virgo. This suggests a spiritual or otherworldly quality in the relationship, a shared sense of a special destiny, and a tendency to take enormous risks based on a misperceived and idealized sense of reality. The Bush administration’s grandiose plan for an American “benevolent global hegemony” is one example of how this out-of-bounds energy is currently manifesting. Likewise, the unrealistic Jupiter/Neptune combination can be seen in the administration’s rather optimistic expectation of democracy suddenly flowering in the Middle East by means of a brutal American onslaught in Iraq. This cheery vision blithely ignores the numerous details that may cause dire, unintended consequences for the planet.

From late December 2003 through mid November 2004 the Bush/Rumsfeld composite Jupiter/ Neptune is likely to be highly stimulated by the transit of Pluto at 20 Sagittarius. The inherent magical thinking and over-optimism of this aspect, followed by its ultimate disillusionment and loss, are likely to be manifested during this period.

An examination of Mr. Rumsfeld’s progressed chart and its intersection with Mr. Bush’s natal and progressed planets reveals another extraordinary glimpse into the astrological underpinnings of the Bush/Rumsfeld folie à deux. From about mid-1999 through October 2003, Mr. Rumsfeld has had and continues to have a progressed Jupiter /Neptune conjunction, waxing at 8Virgo23, in his natal chart. This falls exactly on Bush’s natal Mars (9Virgo18). As ruler of Bush’s Aries Midheaven, Mars takes on a special significance for Chief Exescutive in its impact and description of all things relating to his position in the world and how he defines himself in that role. Due to Rumsfeld’s progressed Jupiter/Neptune on Bush’s Mars, Rumsfeld’s presence in Bush’s life tends to exalt and magnify Bush’s worldly role, but add, once again, a subtly deceptive and unrealistic impetus. This configuration will go into high gear from May 2003 through early June 2004 when Bush’s progressed Sun joins his natal Mars and Rumsfeld’s inspired but grandiose progressed Jupiter/Neptune. In sum, from 1999 to the present, Mr. Rumsfeld has become increasingly tuned to his own transcendent vision (progressed Jupiter/Neptune conjunction). By 2000 and the election, he had connected to Mr. Bush, with whom he shares a sense of inspired and magical destiny (composite Jupiter/ Neptune conjunction) and for whom he acts as a rather ungrounded and unrealistic source of inspiration (Rumsfeld’s progressed Jupiter/Neptune conjunct Bush’s Mars).

The real fireworks begin when, in May 2003, Bush begins a year-long, exceptionally aggressive period, likely to bring significant military action. This corresponds to the progressed Sun conjunct Mars aspect in Bush’s chart which falls on Rumsfeld’s progressed Jupiter/Neptune. Particularly from May through October 2003, as Rumsfeld’s Jupiter Neptune waxes to its most potent, this “vision” of the Secretary of Defense will clearly have a profound impact on the aggressive actions of George Bush.

We can expect a huge trigger for this wild ride in July and August 2003 when Mars makes its station at 9 – 10 Pisces, opposite Bush’s progressed Sun/natal Mars and Rumsfeld’s progressed Jupiter/Neptune. Very big events, likely of a military nature, are likely to unfold during that summer period, followed by extensive difficulties for the Dynamic Duo, as Saturn slams on the breaks and insists on a reality check around October/November 2003. At that point, Saturn will be conjunct the Midheaven of the Bush/Rumsfeld composite chart, conjunct the US Sun, and very near to Bush’s Sun. Moreover, an aspect of dramatic crisis will return for its final pass to Bush’s chart around that time: transiting Pluto opposite Bush’s natal Uranus/progressed MC, just as that progression is reaching its peak.

Another indication of likely intensified military action during the general period from May 2003 through June 2004 is the progression of Rumsfeld’s Midheaven in opposition to his natal Mars at 12 Gemini. The timing of this Midheaven progression opposition Mars is almost exactly the same as the progressed Sun conjunct Mars in Bush’ chart. The transit of Pluto in opposition to the US chart Mars (21 Gemini), especially the station in the first five months of 2004, is a third indicator of military action during the second half of this time framework.

The Saturn transit of October 2003 to the US Sun and Bush’s Sun will return in full force in June 2004, having remained active but somewhat on the back burner during the interim. This suggests that the aggressive and military activities of the Bush administration from October 2003 onward are quite likely to be fraught with difficulties and struggle. Saturn enables the Lords of Karma to reinstate balance, forcing us to live within the constraints of the physical world. Magical Neptunian fantasies do not fare well in a Saturnine environment. They are relentlessly deflated. Thus, by June 2004, It will have become clear that Jupiter’s unbridled optimism and grandiosity combined with Neptune’s tendency to self-delusion and magical thinking is a dangerous combination when applied to the world of geopolitical reality and global power machinations.