Karmic Knowledge

John McCain, long considered to be the frontrunner for the 2008 GOP presidential nomination, is suffering a bit of a setback after President Bush’s announcement last week that he would be sending 20,000 additional troops into Iraq, a plan now commonly referred to as the McCain Doctrine.

The Boston Herald reports today that new polling data, to be released later in the week, shows that “McCain’s popularity among New Hampshire’s independent voters has collapsed.” In fact, in a January poll taken at the annual meeting of elected Phoenix area precinct committeemen in McCain’s home state of Arizona, McCain came in fourth, behind former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney, former House Speaker Newt Gingrich of Georgia, and a relatively unknown San Diego area Congressman, Duncan Hunter.

McCain is fast becoming known as the most hawkish of the potential candidates. A former prisoner of war in Vietnam, he supports an even larger troop escalation than the president himself. In a January 10th interview on the US invasion of Iraq, McCain told MSNBC’s Tim Russert, “I said the military operation would be easy. It was easy. We were greeted as liberators.”

One has to wonder about John McCain’s memory. Perhaps this “idealized picture” of the unmitigated disaster that is the occupation of Iraq is caused by the (dissonant) square of Jupiter (beliefs) to Neptune (dreams, illusion) in McCain’s astrological chart. (For a more detailed analysis of John McCain’s natal chart, you may also want to check out Lynn’s article on why “John McCain Will Never Be President” at Astrodynamics.)

Coming planetary transits to John McCain’s natal chart affirm that his star is not on the rise in the runup to the 2008 presidential elections. (click chart thumbnail for larger image.)

Saturn will be making the first of three conjunctions to his Sun in October of 2007, indicating that there will be limits to how much McCain can shine. With his natal Sun in Virgo, a sign of service, in the 11th house of group ideals, the Saturn transit will likely show that he will become even more cut off from the desires and direction of the public he is trying to serve.

McCain’s Jupiter is in Sagittarius, which means he will shortly be experiencing a Jupiter return. With his natal Jupiter trining his natal Mars showing an expansive, almost religious belief in Martian principles, it is likely that McCain’s Jupiter return, often thought of as a lucky time, will only serve to intensify his stand on increasing the size of the US military and “finishing” the job in Iraq.

Looking at John McCain’s hands, we see that his Jupiter finger, the finger of leadership, is short. Traditionally this is seen as a lack of power, a challenge earning respect, and/or other issues with authority. In addition, the upper phalange appears compromised, a condition that I have examined on the hands of other political figures. (See my posts on Condoleeza Rice and John Bolton.) Mythologically, Jupiter was the defender of principles and protector of the people. When the upper phalange is bent, shrunken or otherwise misshapen, it is an indicator of abandonment of principles and shows challenges regarding right use of power.

(Lest you think I only find this condition on the hands of Republicans, never fear. I will be posting some analyses of Dems who also suffer from damaged Jupiter syndrome. What I do find amazing is how often this condition is found in politicians in general.)

As we move closer to the election, Uranus will be sitting on top of McCain’s Natal Saturn, and transiting Saturn will oppose it, indicating a time of karmic examination. I agree with Nancy, when she says that McCain could be facing health issues at that time. Saturn in the 6th house is often found in the charts of those whose karma is revealed through the body.

With his Saturn in the sign of Pisces, McCain’s karmic challenge is to find a true sense of peace and compassion through earthly service. Neptune, the ruler of Pisces opposes Saturn natally, increasing the karmic message. In late 2008, Saturn moves from a conjunction with his Sun to a conjunction with Neptune. With a series of karmic transits in the runup to the election, McCain could be facing a time when he may have to redefine what it means to feel secure, peaceful and connected to all of mankind.

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