NewsScope for December 11, 2007

Congress Calls for Criminal Investigation into the CIA
 
Last Thursday, under pressure from the New York Times, CIA director Michael Hayden revealed that his agency had destroyed videotapes of secret interrogations during a time when Congress was investigating torture techniques. The CIA maintains that the tapes were destroyed to protect the identities of the interrogators, while human rights groups and many others suspect that the evidence was destroyed to conceal torture, especially "water-boarding."
 
The CIA's horoscope (September 26, 1947; 10:10 am; Washington, D.C.*) eloquently describes the polarity between the competing needs for national security and civil rights. With secretive Scorpio Rising, the ruler of this chart is Pluto, found at the Midheaven, where it's conjunct Saturn. The all-powerful Saturn-Pluto conjunction in Leo reigns over the agency's domain (the world) like an omniscient monarch.
 
The major challenge to the CIA's authority comes from the Saturn-Pluto's opposition to the Moon in egalitarian Aquarius, which inconveniently believes in rights to privacy and equal protection under the law. The Saturn-Pluto also squares Jupiter, which presents the CIA with never-ending moral dilemmas, namely, how to balance the need for national security (Saturn-Pluto) with the civil rights of the very people (Aquarius Moon) it's supposed to protect.
 
The CIA destroyed the videotapes in 2005, as transiting Saturn and Neptune opposed each other while aligned with this central dynamic. This situation is a major headache for the CIA and undermines the credibility of the intelligence community, which can be seen astrologically: the progressed Ascendant (representing the CIA image) is now exactly opposite natal Uranus, the planet of sudden developments and crises.
 
Jupiter-Pluto Lifts Mike Huckabee
 
The latest national polls put religious conservative Mike Huckabee in the GOP's number-two spot, and hot on the heels of front-runner Rudy Giuliani. Huckabee's surge might be traced to the current Jupiter-Pluto conjunction, which favors religious themes. All the top-tier candidates have recently made statements about how their beliefs and politics might interact—most notably, Mitt Romney's speech last week about his Mormonism.
 
Although Mike Huckabee was born with his Sun in self-effacing Virgo (August 24, 1955; Hope, Arkansas; time unknown), his Venus-Mars-Pluto triple conjunction in late Leo adds plenty of confident, mission-oriented optimism to his candidacy, with Venus providing the folksy, likeable, Southern charm. Over the last few months of his spectacular rise, slow-moving Pluto has been favorably trine his triple conjunction in Leo.
 
Huckabee's Jupiter in Leo is exceptionally significant in his natal chart with its close square to Saturn in Scorpio. In the religious sense, it's about knowing the difference between living faith and dead ritual. In the current campaign, Huckabee has gone from no hope (Saturn) to potential winner (Jupiter). Next week, Jupiter enters Capricorn and trines his Virgo Sun just before the Iowa caucus on January 3, a very promising sign.
 
In terms of his connection with the American people, his progressed Jupiter at 25º Leo opposes the U.S. Moon**, so that he taps into the religious faction, including the 40 percent of Iowa Republicans who call themselves evangelicals. As transiting Jupiter moves deeper into Capricorn, Huckabee's strength will probably wane, unless he can broaden his appeal. However, with Pluto entering Capricorn and trining his Sun, he may remain as a power-broker within the GOP, a king-maker representing the religious right.
 
Oprah, Most-Watched TV Show in Iowa
 
On May 1 on CNN's Larry King Live, Oprah endorsed Barack Obama for president, the first time in her illustrious career that she's backed a political candidate. While many pundits doubted her endorsement would benefit Obama, that thinking is shifting this week. Obama's poll numbers are edging upward at the same time that he and Oprah are touring together through the key primary states.
 
Oprah Winfrey's Aquarius Sun (January 29, 1954; Kosciusko, MS***) is found in the Second House of money, where it conjoins Venus. This placement by itself would suggest an ease in attracting financial security. However, the square to Saturn makes it an imperative, a lifelong ambition, which she has accomplished through her unique connections to her American audience, made possible by Saturn's conjunction with the U.S. Scorpio Ascendant.
 
The political partnership between Oprah and Obama is symbolized astrologically by two asteroids: Juno and Pallas. Juno, the partnership asteroid, is found in her Eighth House of shared resources, and by secondary progression, Pallas, the political asteroid, is conjunct her Juno (orb 0º05'). She announced this alliance last May, when transiting Saturn and Neptune opposed each other while aligned with her Juno.
 
Also, at that time transiting Pluto was making its first conjunction with her Sagittarius Ascendant. For the last ten years, Pluto—and all its attendant potential for transformation—has been manifesting Twelfth House experiences, such as personal and spiritual growth. Now, Pluto has returned to her Ascendant, and this time is accompanied by flamboyant, optimistic Jupiter. The Jupiter-Pluto conjunction on Oprah's Ascendant has made her a big-time player in the geopolitical arena.
 

*Source notes and more info on the CIA chart can be found at NewsScope June 11, 2002. The progressed Ascendant opposite Uranus may also explain the recent game-changing NIE on Iran, which was forecast in item #3 in November's Top Five Astro-Events (see NewsScope October 30, 2007).
 
**In the U.S. Scorpio Rising horoscope, the Moon is at 25º Aquarius. For a detailed analysis of how candidates' charts must align with the U.S. Moon to win, see http://neptunecafe.com/USPresidents.html

***For more on Oprah, see NewsScope December 30, 2003 and September 13, 2005.

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