Astro Geography: Barack Obama
by Pete Watson

Guest contributor Peter Watson specializes in locational and midpoint astrology. His work has appeared in The Astrological Journal (U.K.) and The Mountain Astrologer (U.S.), and at his website, Starscan Astrology. Peter lives and practices in Southeast England and can be reached by email.

Barack Obama's horoscope has been thoroughly analysed during the 2008 presidential campaign. The locational astrology angle less so.

As he begins his presidency, it is interesting to note how his chart sums up what he has to offer and what he will be dealing with. The Jupiter-Saturn conjunction in the twelfth house has much to say about the need for a very pragmatic approach to the huge (Jupiter) limitations (Saturn) he is faced with. A Cancerian Venus on the Aries point, coupled with aspects including a Sun-Neptune square and a Mars-Neptune semi-square, show the emotional investment people have made in this man to make personal and collective dreams come true, as well as mirroring star-wise, his undoubted charisma. Perhaps the Cancer-placed Venus also says something about disassembling the previous regime's emphasis on "Homeland Security" and the like. George W Bush has the Sun in the same sign.

We should note that transit Pluto will be within a maximum of just over a degree of orb of opposition to Obama's Venus for the whole of 2009. While the hope and passion for change are echoed by his Sun being on the Jupiter-Uranus midpoint, this transit points neatly to the hole in the US economy. But let's keep things reasonable; what of the geography?

Obama was born in Hawaii, so his rising Jupiter-Saturn, the only planets in the rising half of his horoscope, are found culminating through the centre of the US. These symbolise the big economic and attendant social mess that this man is charged with clearing up. And the areas he might find it hardest to do that may well be in the areas of the Saturn-MC line, which runs North-South, through Fargo and Wichita.

The Saturn line runs through the mid-west, states which Obama did not win, such as Oklahoma, Kansas, Nebraska and the Dakotas. His Neptune-Descendant line crosses his Saturn-Midheaven line just north of Texas. Neptune-Descendant continues south through Houston, the most populous city in the state home of presidential predecessor Bush. The combination suggests that problems are liable to arise for Obama here. Saturn-Neptune dyad is associated with freak weather, particularly flooding. George W Bush has a Neptune (water!) line through New Orleans, for example. The Saturn-Neptune "belt" running north-south on the map could well be where disappointment and cynicism regarding the new president will run deepest. This is where natural and social problems for the US and Obama are likely to erupt and fester during his time in the White House. Great ideals can be put into practice where we find Saturn-Neptune, but doing this takes will, integrity and good fortune. As I write there are large sections of the population living in these areas who are suffering in poverty. Turning things around would be easy under several planetary pairs but under Saturn-Neptune it will be extremely difficult.

The more positive areas for Obama in the US coincide with the regions of the country that have long supported the US Democrats, namely the north-east and the states in the extreme west. For example, we find that Californians are likely to LOVE Obama, with Venus-IC going straight through San Francisco. In fact there is a danger of obsession with him, since his Pluto-Descendant line crosses Venus-IC in this state. Astrologically the controversy already generated over his stance on gay rights and gay marriage is a classic local case of Venus meets Pluto.

The lack of confusion in the Florida result during last year's vote count chimes with Obama's Sun-IC line running so close to Miami. Both George W Bush and Al Gore have Neptune lines here; confusion and corruption were intensified in their race. Obama's victory in Florida, taking the state from the Rupublicans was clear, simple and vital to his winning. He shone here, like the Sun.

Obama's initial political success in Illinois is echoed by the passing of his Mercury-IC line there as well as the proximity of Jupiter-Midheaven, just to the west. Such a combination is highly suggestive of the persuasive style he developed as State Senator, as well as his work on Project Vote and his teaching law in Chicago.

Politicians who have great impact on the world tend to have locational astrology lines running through the places where much of that impact takes place, more often than not precisely through many such places. This is true of Obama, and those in Zimbabwe might hold out some hope of positive change coming through his presidency. Barack's local space Sun line runs right through Harare and his Chiron-Descendant line is very close by. Local space lines radiating through southern Africa from the point most distant from his Hawaiian birthplace, coupled with Sun, Uranus and Node rising lines are suggestive of the galvinising impact here of the election of a man with a black Kenyan father to US President. They also suggest this as a region Obama will be strongly involved with.

Obama's locational astrology in the Near-East is a mixed bag. The potentially aggressive Mars-Ascendant line runs along a very similar area to a George W Bush Mars line. It also runs through the Saudi capital Riyadh and the political hot potato that is Grozny. However Venus, a symbol of both peace and victory, provides lines running through the centre of Iran as well as very close to the region where Osama bin Laden is thought to operate. Note also how Obama's local space Moon line runs directly through the capital cities of both Turkey and Egypt. Both countries are highly significant in relation to current political tensions, and the changeable nature of the Moon is likely to be reflected in these countries' political allegiances toward the US during Obama's time in power.

Barack Obama has no less than four planets culminating through Far-East Asia. Mars-MC close to Tokyo suggests an invigorating if sometimes challenging relationship with Japan. Perhaps there will be some US-Japan spats. Pluto-MC close to North Korea is indicative of possible problems with that country during his time in office, perhaps concerning misuse of power, nuclear issues and even, we could reasonably hope, deep change in that society.

The importance of US relations with China are seen in a culminating Uranus-Node conjunction very close to Beijing and the connection of local space Mercury and Jupiter with Shanghai. The Uranus-Node combination indicates that the new president will need to be flexible in his approach to China, and that there is the risk of issues involving alienation and shock arising between China and the States. Mercury through Shanghai is the perfect symbol of trade and negotiation being high on the agenda and suggests the possibility of deception being a problem.

Obama's Sun-Midheaven line runs right through the heart of the world's next superpower. The importance of US-China relations in the world is clearly stated in this map, with so many lines running through a region that is undergoing rapid change. Uranus-Node over Beijing, we might hope, points to the fact that Obama could bring his evident intelligence and originality to bear here. And that the world's two most powerful nations might find room to cooperate during the challenges we are seeing now. But we should remember that Uranus symbolises the unexpected, the dictatorial as well as originality and breakthrough. It's unwise to forget that we live in insecure, changeable times.

© 2009 by Peter Watson
All rights reserved, used with permission.