April 13, 2001
Nancy Lubar Sommers, LCSW
Al Gore has been noticeably quiet in the last few months, while our current White House Resident unabashedly marauds the country. We know that the valiant former vice president has been teaching courses, and, more recently, we have learned he will be spearheading a political action committee that will fund green candidates. But certain questions linger in the air around him like the promise of coming spring after a heavy April rain. How will his public presence evolve over the next three and a half years? And, more importantly, will he be able to seize the torch and run with it to become the next president of the United States?
To understand the future, we must first take a brief look at the past election (very brief, I promise). To my mind, Gore lost the election (or at least did not make it to the White House) due to two very difficult planetary transits that dogged him from early in 2000 until March 2001. The first, Neptune conjunct the Descendant, made it difficult for Gore to get a firm footing in an appropriate political persona that truly resonated with his inner being. It also made it easy for the pernicious character assassination tactics of Karl Rove, Bush's chief henchman, to stick. This transit began to wane in early December 2000, when many reported their first glimpse of the power, focus, and unswerving strength of the real Al Gore. The Neptunian candidate was gone.
The second challenging planetary configuration to trouble the former vice president was that of Saturn crossing his tenth-house Venus, which lasted from June 2000 through March 2001. The attraction power of Venus is key to winning an election in a media-obsessed world. In each of the past three presidential elections, the winner has had exceedingly strong Venus progressions, upping his "attraction quotient" enormously. Having Saturn on Venus, on the other hand, tends to diminish the charm and charisma natural to Venus, causing a person to feel somewhat stiff, cautious, and inhibited. The easy-going extroversion of the proverbial successful candidate is hard to access.
As of late March 2001, two shifts have come to the planetary alignments affecting Al Gore. Saturn has moved away from his natal Venus, allowing for a more relaxed and comfortable feeling, and his new solar return (birthday chart) indicates an energetic, charismatic, and successful year. As we gain glimpses of the former vice president in the coming months, we will see a man of vision and prodigious creativity, furthering his goals and objectives in group situations (the solar return Sun is in the 11th house and very well aspected). Al Gore will continue this trend over the next few years, with some periods of time more difficult and frustrating and others more productive and fruitful, as he builds his power base.
Come 2004, we will see a coalescence of several planetary configurations that will likely carry Al Gore into the presidency. Two very strong Venus progressions (progressed Venus square natal Sun and progressed Jupiter quincunx natal Venus), already in effect since early 2003, will bring forth all the warmth and charm needed in a successful candidate, while a transit of Pluto trine his Midheaven, that runs from January 2004 through September 2005, will intensify and expand his position of power and prestige. These fortunate aspects are especially strong during November, 2004. Moreover, there are numerous other significant and promising planetary configurations in late 2004 and beyond that also indicate Al Gore will be the country's choice for the next four-year term. With the extraordinary power and penetrating vision of Pluto and the popularity of Venus, he will have the potential to repair a great deal of the damage that is currently emanating from Washington and restore the presidency to the dignity and respect the position warrants.