Smartt Takes: The Limits of Power Above & Below
Coming up: Papal Conclave meets sans Trump, Harvard suits up, Congress takes up a controversial bill; & Pluto, the planet of power, begins its first full-time retrograde in Aquarius. Let's get into it
Sooo, I had every intention of doing something different today. Last night, I recorded a lil politics video with my Aussie, soon-to-be brother in law. We discussed the results, implications & context of the Aussie election. Truly a great convo where we dove into everything from election practices in Aus vs US (like money in politics), the political astrology of the candidates (my pre-election predictions), the Trump effect, universal health care, etc.
Howeverrrrr, we ran into some major technical difficulties and will have to re-record. So I won’t be able to post the video until later this evening or tomorrow. :(
Nevertheless, I loved doing it, and I hope you’ll enjoy it!
In fact, I’d like to do more of it….So, if you are interested in chatting with me about politics, policy, astrology, spirituality, personal development, you name it— just shoot me a note below, and we can figure something out!
The goal here is to have an educated conversation about an issue/cause/idea that you’re passionate about and we can discuss! :)
Alright, let’s get into it: a quick update on the news that happened, and what is coming down the pipeline.
(PS: this issue is a freebie :)).
News, News, News of Today & Tomorrow
Word of the Week: sycophant, defined as “insincere flattery”
Between Trump’s Cabinet meetings Ann Coulter likened to “Kim Jong Il-style tributes” and ChatGPT’s obsequious behavior forcing OpenAI to recall its latest update…is everyone afraid to tell it like it is?
Like Ann, are we reaching a point of exasperation with equivocations, preferring instead to hear the unvarnished truth?
Just some food for thought as you scroll through this week’s Smartt Takes :)
Story of Yesterday:
Trump takes the Pope thing a bit too far…for some.
Remember how I said the news was gonna start to be all about Trump the man & not his people? More unilaterally the things Trump says or the gaffes he makes?
The astrologer knows her subjects.
The top news this week wasn’t about deportations, federal budget proposals, increasing the power of law enforcement, cutting federal programs that promote women’s roles in national security, or nation-wide protests, even though all those things happened.
No. Instead, the big headlines were:
Trump’s firing/rehiring (demoting) of Mike Waltz & giving “Liddle” Marco Rubio yet another job
His interviews this week: ABC Tuesday, where he sparred with the interviewer he apparently chose; & NBC today— where he reportedly said he “didn’t know” if he needed to uphold the Constitution.
His comment that children may only have two dolls rather than thirty due to tariffs. (Coined by some critics as the 21st century “let them eat cake”);
His commencement speech at the University of Alabama, which bore an uncanny resemblance to his 2024 rallies.
His EO to direct the Corporation for Public Broadcasting to cut PBS/NPR funding (more below)
and, most significantly, his portrayal of himself as Pope.
An image that Trump & the White House posted yesterday and have yet to take down:
As expected, the Trump camp thinks people should be able to take a joke. Catholics, however, are pissed, with some issuing a statement rebuking Trump’s post.
Meanwhile, everyone else is wondering what timeline we’re living in.
Story of Tomorrow: The Week Ahead
Speaking of the Pope…
The Papal Conclave —I really need to watch that movie— will vote May 7 to usher in a new Pope
State of Play:
133 cardinals, all under the age of 80, voting via secret ballot.
Strict diets, so that Cardinals can’t receive secret messages.
Long days…maybe years.
Currently, there’s not a clear front runner, but, as far as Smartt Takes knows, Donald Trump is not being considered.
When smoke arises from the chimney of the Sistine Chapel, the world will know a new Pope has been elected.
Of course, anyone who remembers this scene in Eurotrip knows that:
House set to vote on IGO-Anti Boycott bill Monday:
The House of Representatives will vote on a bipartisan bill that would, among other things subject any international government organization (IGO— like the United Nations) that participates in a boycott of Israel or Israeli-settlements to $1 million in fines or up to 20 years in prison.
It’s worth noting that the definition of “boycott” is reportedly rather broad here. Based on that context, rights groups argue that individuals could easily be imprisoned by aligning, citing, or referring to guidance issued by IGOs.
Suggested examples of people who could be imprisoned/fined under this Act:
A business owner deciding not to sell settlement-made wine,
A church following a faith-based boycott policy,
Students asking their administrations to divest from companies linked to settlements, or
A journalist posting a do-not-buy guide of companies linked to Israel,
Note: the bill did pass the House by voice vote in 2024, but was not taken up by the Democrat-led Senate. Notably, the bill had fewer co-sponsors (13) than it does now (24). Sponsors of the bill have previously refuted it would suppress political speech.
Smartt Takes Tidbit: Although the United States’ is steadfast in its commitment to Israel, we do have freedom of speech in this country. And this is one of the laws that would be likely taken up by the Supreme Court, should such arrests happen.
Are the implications a little scary? Absolutely. Am I worried about it? Not really.
Even with the money that has surely been donated to support this law, the Constitution in its original form still supersedes money in politics…at least for the most part.
Harvard Challenges Trump Administration Decision to Revoke Tax-Exempt Status:
On Wednesday, Harvard held a chat for alumni to discuss the state of affairs between the administration and the university, which has been in disarray since Harvard rejected the administration’s list of demands (via the Anti-Semitism Task Force), to exercise more control over the school.
Harvard (1) acknowledged they would address the concerns emanating from this week’s reports showing students have felt unsafe; and (2) noted that endowment money is not unrestricted funding, thus they wouldn’t be insulated from federal funding cuts or revocation of tax exempt status.
On Friday, Trump declared he would follow through revoking Harvard’s tax-exempt status, a threat he made after Harvard made public the administration’s list of demands (via the Anti- Semitism Task Force)
Harvard President Alan Garber (another Taurus in the news) has been making the press rounds — clarifying that, unless Trump admin knows a loophole they don’t, the move is completely illegal.
Harvard also hired their own version of a red team: a completely Republican/conservative legal team with ties to the president.
Perhaps the thinking is: keep your friends close and enemies on retainer?
Ken Burns has words for Trump:
On Friday, the president issued an executive order to ban funding for PBS & NPR.
Now, while we know Trump loooves to make laws via executive orders, he doesn’t have the authority to ban or authorize that funding: only Congress does.
So, while it’s not included in the White House budget proposal, Congress has every right to reauthorize the funding.
But will they? Sure, it’s been a fight amongst the parties for many many years, well preceding Trump.
However, I would be surprised if they fully cut funding. Unfortunately I can’t read the PBS/NPR birthcharts. (Or maybe I can, stay tuned next week.)
Either way, according to the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, PBS/NPR are funded through September 2027.
And if Democrats take back the House or Senate during the midterms (as seems almost inevitable right now…though Democrats never miss an opportunity to miss an opportunity), then you know that funding is going nowhere.
Note: Funding wouldn’t just cut the news coverage Trump doesn’t like. It cuts programs like Sesame Street, funding for historical documentaries like Ken Burns’ work, etc.
Imagine not growing up on Arthur or Mr. Rogers’ Neighborhood because the president, at the time, didn’t like the way the media was covering him.
U.S. GDP contracts 0.3% in Q1 of 2025:
The first contraction in 3 years. According to Trump though, it’s Biden’s fault. Indeed, “the bad parts belong to Biden because he did such a bad job” but the good parts of the economy are his.
BarStool Sports president, Dave Portnoy disagrees.
Big Ole Astrology Tidbit
Planet of Power is unearthing some sh*t over the next 5 months
Pluto in Aquarius goes retrograde for the very first time in our lifetimes…today.
And I think we’re in for two big ole reviews/reveals:
People are going to take a step back and think about what it means to harness their collective power most effectively and call out things that don’t sit right.
This administration is going to be under further scrutiny from the public, as well as do their own reviewing. Trump is also gonna be reviewing his 1:1 relationships & making some changes.
Technocrats will be under scrutiny too.
What does it mean astrologically?
Pluto represents power, unearthing, discovery.
Aquarius is all about the people, technology, innovation, humanitarian. Doing things differently. (Tbh I’m also thinking it gives power to the technocrats as well.)
Retrogrades = a “let’s check our work before we turn it in” period.
Except it’s about collective power, change, transformation.
Pluto had briefly entered Aquarius in spring 2023 & early 2024, but it retrograded back into Capricorn (representing structures, tradition, institutions).
However, on Nov 19, 2024, it permanently entered Aquarius.
So, this retrograde isn’t about the Biden, Trump 45, or Obama eras. It’s not about reviewing politics/power under Pluto in Capricorn (2008-November 18, 2024).
No no, it’ll be about what’s happened from November 2024-May 2025. And we will all be thinking about what needs to change and how to do things differently. All of us.
My guess? Trump may start losing real support.
Trump is quite literally the very last leader elected during Pluto in Capricorn that we (or any country) will elect in our lifetime. And, while people were excited to bring him into the old Capricornian world to shake things up, the new Aquarian world may not be quite as ready for or welcoming to him as we/he thought.
Also, with Pluto retrograde, we’ll see reevaluation about AI & concern about its impacts— especially between now & when Uranus heads into Gemini on July 7.
We’re already seeing this w the Open AI “sorry ChatGPT is a sycophant” recall, and
The Atlantic’s story on the college job market this year.
Pluto is slooooooww moving though (it’ll be in Aquarius for 20 freaking years), so I don’t suspect this will happen overnight, nor even in broad swaths. But we will catch glimpses of it from now until October.
All this being said…
Only people living in the 18th century knows what a Pluto retrograde solely in Aquarius feels like.
So no one, not me, nor any other astrologer, knows exactly what is going to happen. We can only muster a guess, and harness the energy available. Be wary of anyone that tells you otherwise. :)
Alright, that’s it from me. Keep an eye out for the Aussie convo, and I’ll see you next week!
In the meantime enjoy your new federal holiday, should that be a thing. Something that, again, requires Congressional approval.
Alas, “Happy Victory Day!”