Some folks are born made to wave the flag,
ooh, they’re red, white and blue.
And when the band plays “Hail to the Chief”
they point the cannon right at you.
It ain’t me, it ain’t me, I’m no senator’s son.
It ain’t me, it ain’t me, I’m no fortunate one.
Remember the old tune “Fortunate Son” by Creedence Clearwater Revival? It seems to have been written with Vice President Albert Gore, Jr. in mind. The son of Tennessee Senator Albert Gore, Sr., Al Gore has spent his entire life preparing to enter rooms accompanied by the band playing “Hail to the Chief.” And, it’s likely he understands exactly what it means to have the cannon pointed right at him. After all, power at those dizzying heights is a double-edged sword indeed. The nominee of the Democratic Party for president, Al Gore has only one obstacle left in his quest for the presidency—another fortunate son, George W. Bush.
The Need to be First—Sun in Aries
Born on March 31, 1948, at 12:53 pm, in Washington, D.C., Gore has his Sun in fiery Aries. As would befit the first sign of the zodiac, those with Sun in Aries typically want to be first in all that they do. Ruled by the planet Mars, they are natural competitors who will fight for what they want. Impatient and impulsive, they are the quintessential “alpha” types. Those who know Gore well say he performs best under pressure. He walked away easily with the Democratic nomination, in spite of the pundits who predicted that Bill Bradley would give him the political fight of his life. But perhaps that threat gave him the edge he needed to win and to make it interesting for him.
Who am I Anyway? A Touch of Neptune
Neptune, the planet of illusion and idealism, is opposite Gore’s Sun in Aries, and it is this aspect that most defines his personality. The influence of Neptune often leads one to sacrifice oneself for a higher cause. Neptune can lend an air of mystery, and often creates misunderstandings. There are always many questions and few answers. We rarely see Sun/Neptune people clearly, if at all, and they may not even have a clear picture of themselves. This is the aspect of the “identity crisis.”
While Gore struggles to be more spontaneous, more appealing, more like Bill, he must surely wonder why and how he got to this point. He’s always prided himself on doing the right thing, and therefore expects that the right thing will happen. Yet, his advisors suggest that to be elected, he must overcome his over-achieving Boy Scout image. He went to Vietnam, albeit as a journalist, but he went. Clinton evaded the draft and, in effect, so did George W. by joining the reserves. But no one seems to care anymore about presidents and military service. On the other hand, it’s pretty much an accepted fact that Gore “inhaled,” but he’s still viewed as a stiff. How confusing it all is—how, well, how Neptunian!
Gore’s reasons for going to Vietnam are very illustrative of the Sun-Neptune pattern. He told a childhood friend that since there weren’t a lot of people from their county to be drafted, if he did not go, he would know who went in his place. Guilt, another manifestation of Neptune, motivated him to do his duty to his country. Perhaps he also dreamed of running for president someday, and believed military service would be expected. Gore, in typical Sun-Neptune fashion, idealized his father, and might have thought he could help his father’s tight senate reelection race. Ironically, it was Al Sr.’s own lukewarm attitude to the war that eventually cost him his Senate seat. Thus, if Gore went to Vietnam for his father’s sake, it was for naught. It was his father’s devastating political loss that led Gore to reexamine his own career goals. He even entered divinity school and sought answers in the spiritual realm before jumping back into the political arena to follow in his father’s footsteps.
Trusting and being trusted are major issues that will crop up time and again for those with Sun-Neptune. Even when they are telling the truth, they may still appear deceptive. As a result, some can become quite defensive. Frequently, the line between reality and fantasy is all too blurred. Gore’s Sun-Neptune opposition is currently being activated by a challenging square aspect by the July 1, 2000 eclipse. Eclipses tend to put a spotlight on the planets involved, and, right on cue, suspicions about Gore’s activities in the 1996 campaign financing events are in the news. There is even talk of a congressional investigation, led of course by the opposition party which has everything to gain by attacking Gore’s character.
Whether or not there are formal investigations of the finance issue, Gore’s integrity will certainly be called into question by the Bush camp. And Gore, no stranger to being misunderstood, will undoubtedly respond in such a way that his answers will evoke even more questions. But, then he will move on to campaign even harder. Though Bush currently enjoys a comfortable lead in the polls, all astrological indicators point to the fact that, in the end, this will be a close contest between the two fortunate sons.
