If It Looks Like a President, And it Walks Like a President...

...then it must be a President!

(This is a warning, I've had the creepy crud for the last week and am writing even worse than usual).

In his book, Blink, Malcolm Gladwell talks about both the good and bad sides of instantaneous thinking and judgments. I've talked about it before. One of the examples Gladwell gives for when wrong "Intuitive" thinking failed in history was in the election of the 29th President of the United States, Warren G. Harding. Harding was elected to office in 1921 and died a couple of years later from either food poisoning, stroke or heart attack (his wife wouldn't allow for an autopsy). Gladwell says that Harding was one of the worst Presidents in history and was elected almost solely on his appearance and the fact that he looked the part of a President.

I'm aware that the United States is about to elect another President who looks a lot the part of a President and who has the allure of a Rock Star but is not clearly presenting any solid ideas or plans for the country's future. I'm also aware that the current President was elected for reasons other than his talent to perform his job. I also sort of remembered that Uranus was in Pisces in the 1920s so figure this might be a manifestation of that phenomenon. As representatives of the last two signs of the Zodiac both Uranus and Pisces represent the Intuitive, Collective unconscious side of people. It is said that Harding was elected to office through the backroom dealings of his friends and in return they he planted his friends, called the "Ohio Gang," in key positions on his staff. Some of them immediately got into trouble with scandals. Kind of sounds a lot like Bush & Cheney's "gang."

So, as a matter of fact, in 1921, when Harding assumed office, Uranus in Pisces was being opposed by Saturn in Virgo just as it will later this year. This will be the same aspect that will occur when the new President is elected into office next year, just at the end of Virgo/Pisces rather than at the beginning. When the opposition solidifies, Saturn and Uranus will have moved onto the first degrees of Aries and Libra. There's also going to be a difference in the aspect in that in 1921, Pluto was trining Uranus from the sign of Cancer. In 2010+ Pluto will be squaring Uranus-Saturn from Capricorn, a more challenging aspect, perhaps closer to the Saturn opposition to Uranus/Pluto that occurred in the mid-60s but involving the Cardinal signs.

Great Social/Political Movements aside, I wondered if there were indicators in Harding's chart that paints his incredible Presidental Personality. From the Wikipedia article it seems that Harding's friends were his downfall, he seemed to have had a lot of corrupt ones. Kind of interesting that his North Node is in Libra in the 7th house conjunct Libra's ruler, Venus. He perhaps deferred decision-making too much to his partners or was simply struggling with an Aries-1st house South Node. The Wikipedia article is full of answers about what this aspect meant. Won election through dealings of his friends and political help from his wife; 1920 was the first election in which women could vote and Harding supported the Suffragette movement; was known to have been involved in signing Peace Treaties after World War I; his mistress was kept quiet during campaign and presidency, Wiki article says she is thought to have been the only person to extort money from a political party.

Warren Harding
b. Nov. 2, 1865 2:30pm Blooming Grove, OH

Sun 11 Scorpio; ASC 13 Pisces; Moon 4 Taurus; MC 21 Sagittarius; NN 20 Libra

Harding's photographic appeal can be seen right away through the Pisces Rising. Neptune influence always adds photogenic appeal. This is doubled and tripled in influence because Neptune, chart ruler, is in Harding's 1st house of physical body. Plus, his Ascendant is trining a large Scorpio stellium including the Sun from Harding's 8th House. Scorpio and 8th House are magnetic.

Uranus in Pisces was approaching Harding's Ascendant as he became President. This is a positive vibe giving off the Let Freedom Ring vibe, plus an exciting, electrical quality to his personality. He died while traveling across the country trying to connect with the average people. Harding's Chiron was conjunct his Ascendant so Uranus was passing over it as well. It is thought that his health began to decline with a bad case of food poisoning in British Columbia. He was going through Sun-Pluto-Saturn-Neptune squares through his natal chart, his transit chart and his progressed chart. (Natal Sun-Saturn opposition Pluto from H8 to H2. Died during Saturn-Pluto square in which Saturn opposed his Natal Neptune and his Progressed Sun opposed his natal Pluto).

Harding's personality was very watery as Neptune rules his Chart and is placed in his 1st House. His Ascendant is also trined by an 8th house stellium in Scorpio of Saturn-Sun-Mercury-Mars.

Scorpio has strong leadership potential, of course, as long as it keeps things on the up and up. Plus, Harding has a Sagittarius Midheaven which means that he projected an open, sporty, fun, moralistic personality. Sagittarius can also be associated with corruption and hypocrisy if there's a potential for it shown elsewhere in the chart which it is here.

If I'm reading the Astrolocality Map on my software correctly, Harding's Neptune line was running through Washington and his Sun ASC line was running through San Francisco where he died.