Peter Pan in Midlife

Every fourteen years, Donald Trump considers settling down. In 1987 he made a pass at the Oval Office—and by Election Day 2001, he will have flirted with it again. Mind you, this attempt at settling down has little to do with actually being the president, but more to do with raising funds as a presidential candidate can. Indeed, he will be able to reap many rewards from dallying at the threshold of the White House, primarily acquiring yet more virtual money.

There is potential for everyone to find their own shadow in Donald Trump. It isn't him, the Donald-at-home, that invites projection. It is his image that is loved or hated. He has created an IMAX screen on which the general public might project their own movie. He's a legend in his own mind.

A Fire-Air Chart

What makes this man so periodically enormous, yet constantly in view? The fuel that propels Trump is a combination of fire and air—literally, heat and talk. All but three of his planets are in fire or air signs. What gives Trump his ability to harness these elements and create an image of wealth and largesse, allowing him to play in the sandbox with the bigger boys? Fate, largely, but time, circumstances and personality have aided this man in his life-play.

Trump has created a cult of personality that is crafted in perfect response and accord with the grosser material values of modern America. He is the exemplar of the Great White American Male Capitalist Iconoclast. He is a rebel and a trickster, where his eccentricities are portrayed as desirable assets—the amusing boy, the clever player.

Building an Empire with Venus and Saturn

Astrologically, Venus, the dual goddess of love and wealth, is arm in arm with Saturn, the dual god both of success and penury, in Trump’s chart. This combination is the leading factor underlying his monument building—his creation of huge, lavish eponymous structures. His propensity for grandiose baroque environments is a reflection of his own interior life—inflated, ostentatious and hugely expensive. His need to monumentalize and immortalize his image underlies his apparently carefree lifestyle.

There is nothing carefree about Donald Trump. Venus and Saturn conjunct in the sign Cancer hide a secret side to him, one that is vulnerable to emotional attack (Venus in Cancer) and fearful of criticism (Saturn), all the while inviting it as a stimulant. His need for control (Saturn) limits his ability to experience and express feelings (Venus), thus, he is a man of ideas and action, with instincts that are raw and primitive, more like a predatory animal than new age man.

It is that same aspect of Saturn and Venus that describes his real feelings about people: when he is finished with a person, project or idea, he discards it as quickly as he courted it. When the usefulness of something (Saturn) is over, so is that something.

Donald Trump's pursuit both of love and money is legendary—but the prime motivation behind that search is one of fear—fear of not getting or deserving either (Saturn). That he surrounds himself with artifacts and artifice reflects his eternal boy, longing for approval and a loving hug from mommy. That his surrogate mothers are all animate dolls—beauty queens and models—is a testimony to more monument building.

Emperor Trump

Trump has the horoscope of a Roman emperor. Having Leo Rising with Mars in the First House, he is aware of the roles that are played out on the modern stage. Sensitive to appearances, his is largely a public face, but one in which he genuinely believes. There is little in the way of phoneyness in his horoscope, which means he really believes in who he appears to be! His story is the story of Narcissus, the beautiful boy who fell in love with his image in the pond. To Donald, all the world is a pool in which he might see himself reflected.

A Fluid Public Image

Trump sees life as an adventure in transformation, adaption and ability to be fluid. Without his Moon in Sagittarius opposite to Uranus, he would not be as immensely fortunate, or so emotionally able to disengage (Uranus) from circumstances.

Even in the throes of bankruptcy, his self-assigned role was to come out on top and embark on yet another adventure, regardless of the individuals in the wings. His resurrection was of biblical proportion. It is unusual to enhance one's image by being a major loser. His spectacular downfall added to his glamorous image by dint of his reclaiming his borrowing power. By being so deeply unable to pay his debts, he had more power over his creditors than they over him!

Trump is a player, a boy who feels threatened if he is not free to take extreme risks and bolt when he feels the pressure of responsibility to actual people. There is a part of Trump that has no concern for others—no real concern for the human dilemma, because he earnestly and sincerely believes in the game of life, not the purpose of life.

President Trump?

It is very unlikely that Trump will see the White House as home—in fact, it is highly unlikely that he wants it. He would loathe being the president of the United States. It would require innate characteristics that he simply doesn't have. Mind you, if he could be president, but have an attendant or a V.P. who would do all the gruntwork and be present for the sheer, boring, bureaucratic labor of the job, lose sleep for him and care on his behalf, then maybe. But, no, he would not be free to move quickly, play hard, and enjoy his remarkably secretive life.

His real claim to power is that he exemplifies the epitome of modern American values. He is a living, breathing icon to the credo that the power of money can create anything, and destroy anything. You can be a presidential candidate if you have enough money. Money can buy perfection, impeccable appearances, lavish surroundings, power, amusement, toys, love, or at least seduction, and it certainly buys Donald a lot of attention—just what he needs so very much!

In times of social chaos, archetypal figures like Donald Trump emerge to show the collective just what their culture has bred. The fact is that the detached, unemotional game of shifting finances fits his nature better than the presidency does.