By Charon Dunn-Roff
OCCASIONALLY THERE comes along a character--like Newt Gingrich--who inspires so much discussion and confusion that it's up to an astrologer to sort things out.
To this end I obtained Newt's pertinent information and undertook a careful study of his birth chart to see if I could gain some insight into the many questions people ask about him. What motivates him? Why does he act that way? Why doesn't he just shut up?
When was Newt born, anyway?
Baby Newt was born June 17, 1943, in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. Others who share Newt's June 17 birthday are Barry Manilow and Dean Martin. Geminis. Enough said. 1943 was the Year of the Sheep, and others born that year include Mick Jagger and Robert De Niro.
Were there any ill omens upon his birth?
Little Newt was born under a full moon. In medieval times he would have been a prime suspect for lycanthropy and possibly abandoned in the woods. Fortunately for Newt, most people no longer believe in werewolves.
Folks who are born when the moon is full have a reputation for having a dual nature, as do Geminis. There are (at least) two Newts, and they barely know each other. One, the solar, or public, Newt, is a verbose politician who believes himself to be very respectable and ethical. At odds with this self-image is Newt's Sagittarian moon. (Two Sagittarians born the same year as Newt are Keith Richards and Jim Morrison.) Newt's secret emotional self identifies more with leather-clad dope-smoking rebels. If only young Newt's mother had thought to buy him a guitar.
Newt has emotions?
Newt's emotions are in fact extremely suppressed. This is shockingly displayed by the presence of Saturn in his chart. Saturn is the very embodiment of discipline and harsh structure, and in Newt's chart it's in Gemini, along with his sun and opposed to his moon. Newt exists under a veritable set of iron shackles, confined by his rigidly self-imposed sense of moral righteousness. What was he doing during the Summer of Love, when his peers were enjoying drug-saturated rock and roll orgies? He would have liked to have been running down Haight Street in San Francisco wearing only a battered pair of leather jeans and a dazed grin. But the heavy chains of responsibility prevent Newt from ever doing such a thing, except perhaps in his dreams.
In addition to the sun and Saturn, Mercury and Uranus are also found in Gemini in Newt's chart, indicating further emotional alienation--from intellectual matters, from technology, from communicational skills.
Is there anything good in Gingrich's birth chart? Yes there is, in a way. The Newt man has what is known as a grand trine, which is a beneficial configuration, blessing those individuals possessing it with extreme skill and good fortune in a certain area of their lives. A grand trine can occur in the element of water, gifting the individual with emotional stability; in air it signifies great intellectual prowess; and in earth it indicates mastery of physical challenges. None of these really apply. Newt's grand trine is in the element of fire. With Venus and Pluto in Leo (indicating a megalomaniacal craving for sexual power) trine the beleaguered moon in Sagittarius, which is trine Mars in Aries (an indication of extreme aggression, often found in violent criminals), we have a man who balances his profound emotional insecurities with frenetic explosions of gut-based energy. A sort of flatulence of the soul.
And finally, we have poor, isolated Neptune, the symbol of spirituality and compassion. In Newt's chart it is allied with Mercury, indicating that, intellectually, Newt thinks spirituality is a good idea. But his sun is in hostile aspect, and although spirituality might be a favorable notion, Newt personally isn't buying into it. No, his life instead is spent in a quest to satisfy his insecurity, bloodlust, and bizarre yet unacknowledged sexual cravings while desperately trying to avoid the specter of depression.
This sort of behavior does not go unrewarded. As Newt's Jupiter in Cancer indicates, the more he attempts to still his own insecurities and fears of sexual inadequacy, the more money he makes and the more depressed he gets. His bank account increases in direct proportion to his angst.
Is there some sort of catastrophe lurking in Newt's future?
Well, Newt is currently right in the middle of it. He's beginning to experience a steady slide into depression as the gloomier planets begin their harsh trek over his emotions. We shall all just have to watch and see whether he can manage to keep the darker corners of his psyche intact during all of this. As for his forthcoming book, it might not be a good idea to write a book during a Pluto opposition (such as the one Newt is currently experiencing). Although it could become a huge seller, it is likely to create a sort of anti-fame that would result in his name becoming a pejorative slang term (i.e., "Will you quit Newting and give me a straight answer?").
Will Newt be president some day?
I believe in ending astrological readings on a positive note. No, it does not appear that Newt will ever join the audio-animatronic president brigade at Disneyland. However, given Newt's rather unique role in American history, the stars do not rule out the possibility of Newt robots being constructed by the amusement industry.
This article originally appeared in the San Francisco Bay Guardian.
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