Trump Hires a Hawk
Of all the changes taking place in Trump’s cabinet and staff, perhaps the most significant is the replacement of National Security Adviser, H. R. McMaster by John Bolton. McMaster is lifelong soldier and a bona fide war hero. Bolton, on the other hand, avoided military service during Vietnam (as did his former boss, George W. Bush and his new boss Donald Trump.) However, while McMaster has worked to temper Trump’s occasionally bellicose moods, Bolton has apparently never seen a war he didn’t like, and many people are concerned about his influence on this mercurial President.
A partial horoscope for Bolton reveals the source of his hawkish views. (Click on John Bolton to see a chart done for noon on his date of birth.) He is a Scorpio by Sun sign. Before the discovery of Pluto, Mars was the considered to be the ruler of Scorpio, and Scorpio people typically relish a good fight. Of course, for Scorpio a good fight is by no means a fair fight. While an Aries combatant will fight anyone, anytime, Scorpio rarely enters a battle without some sort of advantage.
This may be why Bolton was such a vocal advocate of the invasion of Iraq in 2003. We had already proven that the Iraqi army was a paper tiger in the first Gulf War. There was no question about who would win in a second. What Bolton (and so many others) did not account for was how the fall of Saddam Hussein would change the geo-political balance in that region. Fifteen years later American troops are still paying for that oversight with their blood.
In Bolton’s chart we see that his Mercury in Scorpio is square Pluto. This connection to Pluto, the modern ruler of Scorpio, certainly increases the influence of that sign. Also, when Mercury squares Pluto it creates an “all or nothing” way to thinking. There is a tendency toward prejudices and obsessions, particularly obsessions built on fear and apprehension. And when Scorpio fears something, it does not run away. It begins a deliberate and insidious campaign to destroy what it fears.
People with a lot of Scorpio in their charts often have difficulty admitting when their mistakes. Bolton has never stepped back for his support of the war in Iraq, even when many of his fellow Republicans (including Donald Trump) were labeling it a disaster (and blaming it on Hillary Clinton.) Bolton has also called for regime change in Iran, Syria and North Korea. People with Mercury afflicted by Pluto have a tendency to think that just because their methods failed once doesn’t mean that they can’t work a second, third or fourth time, if you just apply a little more force.
Another alarming thing about Bolton’s appointment is the fact that Mars in his chart is close to forming an opposition aspect to Trump’s Sun. This can mean two things: that Bolton and will fight with Trump and end up being fired, or that Bolton’s influence will make Trump more responsive to the substantial martial influence in his own chart. I heard a report that before he hired him, Trump made Bolton promise that he wouldn’t start a war. Of course, as National Security Adviser, Bolton can’t start a war. As President of the United States, Donald Trump can.
