Is RFK Jr. Dropping Out?

RFK Jr. will speak Aug. 23 at 2 pm EDT

I just finished liveblogging the Democratic National Convention in my paid subscriber chat! If you don’t already have a paid subscription, you can start one now and gain access to my liveblogs of both the Democratic National Convention and July’s Republican National Convention. I include astrological charts for many speakers at both events, so the liveblogs could be a good source of raw data for other astrological writers.

For the rest of the week, however, the big news story will be whether Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is staying in the 2024 presidential race as an independent candidate. CNN reported that, on August 20, Nicole Shanahan, Kennedy’s running mate, said on a podcast that the ticket was looking at the possibility of dropping out and endorsing Donald Trump.

Kennedy said in an Instagram post that he would address the nation on social media at 2:00 pm EDT on Friday, August 23 — that’s tomorrow! He is on Instagram at @robertfkennedyjr. In advance of the address, here are a few potentially relevant charts.

The chart of the Robert F. Kennedy Jr. address itself

I don’t know what city Kennedy will be in when he gives the address, so I’m using Washington, D.C., as the subject has to do with who will govern the nation. I’m not a horary expert and would love to have one weigh in here.

One very obvious thing about this chart is that the Moon is void of course. If you want to schedule an event that will have a big impact, you typically don’t want to schedule it when the Moon is void of course. The common advice is to file your taxes when the Moon is void of course so that nothing will come of them.

The Moon’s next aspect, after it changes sign, will be a square to Pluto. Its previous aspect, kicking off the void Moon, is trine retrograde Mercury.

The address as transits to Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s natal chart

Even though the Aries Moon for the address is void of course, it’s filling in the missing end of Kennedy’s cardinal T-square. The address could be significant for Kennedy, whether or not it is for anyone else.

On a bigger scale, Kennedy is having a Jupiter return at this time. While a Jupiter return is typically a good thing, his Jupiter return is complicated by the transiting Jupiter-Saturn square. Transiting Saturn is square his natal Jupiter at the same time he is having a Jupiter return.

Kennedy’s natal Jupiter is in the 11th house, reflecting his interest in taking a prominent role in the collective. However, his natal Jupiter is in Gemini, which is in detriment — not good according to essential dignities. Transiting Jupiter in Kennedy’s 11th house reinforces these themes for him.

Meanwhile, transiting Saturn in Pisces is squaring all that from Kennedy’s 8th house. The 8th house has to do with collaboration and shared resources. If Kennedy were to decide to endorse Trump, that would be one way of collaborating and sharing resources. It would be a way that makes a lot of sense for Saturn transiting one’s 8th house — settling for an arrangement that’s not ideal for you because you realistically can’t get what you want on your own.

Transiting Saturn in the 8th house could also refer to Kennedy’s relationship with his current running mate, Nicole Shanahan. To date, the public comments on the possibility of dropping out and endorsing Trump have come from Shanahan rather than Kennedy. It’s presently unclear to me whether Kennedy wanted her to do that.

Synastry between Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and Nicole Shanahan

There has been some chatter this election season about the possibility of Trump dropping his running mate, J.D. Vance, and picking someone more popular. I haven’t taken those rumors too seriously, but I don’t remember a previous election season where such a thing was even talked about.

Well, if dropping your running mate is now an option that’s on the table, is Kennedy stuck with Shanahan?

When I took RC210, Counselling Issues in Astrology, at Kepler College this past spring term, the assignments often involved looking for the closest Ptolemaic aspect between two charts. Though most pairs of charts will have multiple aspects between the charts, the closest aspect was believed to be key in determining the major theme of the relationship between two people.

In Solar Fire, you can get the closest aspect by generating the biwheel, then going to Reports, then Sorted Aspects. This report shows that Kennedy and Shanahan have their Midheavens exactly trine with an orb of 0°00’. The Midheaven has to do with professional ambitions and one’s purpose in life, so having their Midheavens harmoniously aligned suggests they could work together well on that level.

The next tier down is Shanahan’s Saturn square Kennedy’s Pluto and Shanahan’s Saturn sextile Kennedy’s Venus, both with an orb of 0°03’ separating.

Meanwhile, Kennedy’s Saturn is broadly conjunct Shanahan’s Pluto. I would therefore see hard Saturn-Pluto connections as a big theme between Kennedy and Shanahan. Although Kennedy and Shanahan both have Saturn in Scorpio, they are one Saturn cycle apart. That is a big generation gap, reflected by the gulf between Kennedy’s Pluto in Leo and Shanahan’s Pluto in Scorpio. Different Pluto generations simply see the world differently. 

Both Kennedy and Shanahan have a lot of stuff spread throughout Scorpio, reflecting their shared interest in digging deep into subjects that are commonly seen as forbidden. Within the Scorpio placements, the closest connection is Kennedy’s Saturn conjunct Shanahan’s South Node. That sounds intense! Sometimes a South Node connection in synastry is experienced as fated, but it can also become something that holds you back — something you have to shed in order to move forward, especially if you’re the South Node person in the equation.

If there is one Saturn placement I am personally glad I do not have, it is Saturn in Scorpio. I have seen Saturn in Scorpio people be so utterly resistant to change that change is ultimately forced upon them by circumstances in the craziest ways imaginable. When Scorpio energy is working well, you can make changes and get rid of what you don’t need when it makes sense to do so. However, having Saturn in a particular sign can make it hard to work with that sign’s energy effectively.

Kennedy and Shanahan are a strange match on the surface. Perhaps they had an important reason for coming together with Kennedy’s Saturn conjunct Shanahan’s South Node. In order to move forward, though, they may need to be open to changing the form of their alliance.  

Synastry between Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and Donald Trump

The rumor has it that Kennedy will endorse Trump, potentially in exchange for a position in Trump’s administration. Trump’s Uranus is closely conjunct Kennedy’s Jupiter, which is currently getting triggered by Kennedy’s Jupiter return, so it makes sense that this is at least being talked about right now. Kennedy’s Jupiter return won’t last forever, though, and Uranus is inherently unstable. Sometimes Uranus connections can lift you out of a rut permanently, but sometimes they just stir up a lot of chaos that doesn’t ultimately amount to much.

Trump’s Midheaven is trine Kennedy’s Venus and square Kennedy’s Pluto, with an orb of 0°06’ applying on both counts — those are the closest Ptolemaic aspects. Next tier down is Trump’s Jupiter trine Kennedy’s Jupiter, 0°07’ applying, and Trump’s Saturn conjunct Kennedy’s South Node, 0°11’ applying.

Trump’s Saturn is part of his Venus-Saturn conjunction in Cancer, so I can more broadly say that Kennedy’s South Node is conjunct Trump’s Saturn-Venus conjunction.

It’s the reverse of Kennedy’s Saturn-South Node connection with Shanahan. This time, Kennedy is the South Node person, and Trump is the Saturn person.

Kennedy’s South Node in Cancer might give him a tendency to be dependent on others. Coming from a wealthy family, he probably had opportunities to be taken care of — at least financially.

Kennedy’s North Node in Capricorn, however, calls him to go out and achieve on his own. With his forays into controversial issues, he has done that. As a result, many members of his family have publicly expressed criticism of his activities. That has to hurt, even if he truly believes he’s doing the right thing.

Trump’s Venus-Saturn conjunction on Kennedy’s South Node could therefore be seductive to Kennedy, dangling a reminder of the family support he sacrificed to get to where he is now. Kennedy can get the comfort of his South Node back — if only he pays Trump’s price. Of course, Trump’s Venus-Saturn conjunction is very conscious of what everything costs.

Meanwhile, Kennedy’s Pluto is close to Trump’s Mars-Ascendant conjunction in Leo, possibly making it easy for Kennedy to trigger Trump’s insecurities without even trying to. Whether or not Kennedy’s The Real Anthony Fauci is your favorite book, Kennedy is at least articulate enough to write a book, and Trump is clearly not. Kennedy’s Mercury at 29° Capricorn forms a quincunx with Trump’s Ascendant at 29° Leo, heightening the potential for Trump to feel threatened by Kennedy’s intellect.

Whatever happens between Kennedy and Trump tomorrow, Kennedy will still have a lot of energy from transiting Mars in October as described in my previous post. It’ll be interesting to see what he does with it!