Hamilton, Hamilton, Hamilton – that’s all you hear today. The local library newsletter of events has several events on the schedule about Hamilton. Alexander Hamilton, “American statesman and one of the Founding Fathers of the United States,” has been our new hero since the opening of the musical Hamilton on Broadway in 2015.

While I haven’t read much about Hamilton or seen the show on Broadway yet, Hamilton for me is the man who proposed a national bank. Is this the Hamilton who is now in our attention? Or is there another Alexander Hamilton out there who plays sports or has a tech company?

While I’m always happy to see my country focused on history, the chasm between this interest and how politicians are received is quite stunning. Imagine Hamilton had run for president in 2016 talking about financial systems, especially in the two-minute time frame of a political debate. He probably would have been deemed a “policy wonk” and yawned off the stage. There were some candidates who dared to speak of the Constitution, but they didn’t make much progress in the election.

Prior to Hamilton, our last foray into media history was the mini-series about John Adams (2008), our second president. While the series had some popularity, Adams didn’t take hold in the American psyche quite the way Hamilton has.

Pluto in Capricorn

In 2008, Pluto entered the sign of Capricorn which rules authority and structure. Capricorn is your society regardless of its characteristics. Capricorn loves authority and follows the rules. When Pluto the great destroyer and transformer entered that sign, the rules changed.

The first change was in Hamilton’s playground, the financial system. We learned there are some flaws in the system and that a few individuals can take a global financial system to its knees. In the recent US politic election, all past protocol was destroyed. The old rules are gone and the new rules, if we are fated to have any, have not yet been established.

The United States was “born” with Pluto in 27 degrees of Capricorn. Pluto will return to that position in 2022 for the first time since the nation’s founding. Prior to that in 2020 Saturn and Jupiter will travel with Pluto in Capricorn so I expect the next election to be even more volatile than 2016. We are going through a pull-the-rug-from-under-us evolution of Capricorn issues of structure and authority.

Adams and Hamilton

The John Adams mini-series launched right as Pluto moved into Capricorn in 2008. Hamilton came later at 13 degrees of Capricorn. Pluto in Capricorn brought some interest in historical figures.

Alexander Hamilton appears to have been born in 1755 or 1757. Without a year, we’re at a loss for his horoscope. However, if he was born on January 11, his sun is in about 21 degrees of Capricorn. We have a Capricorn hero for Capricorn time.

It’s interesting that our current president is the anti-hero, bucking all the rules, insulting people, and generally exhibiting behavior that is the opposite of the Capricorn old man – Trump is the eternal child who refuses to grow up and follow rules.

Hamilton, then, might be the shadow side of that energy. We’ve projected our immature child onto the public stage but are also identifying with the mature, intellectual man who wants to discuss banking and taxation.

The Real Capricorns

When I toss out the extant Capricorns on the public stage, you’ll get a sense of how Hamilton might be received today.

Three Capricorns ran for president in 2016. One of the more prominent is Republican Senator Ted Cruz of Texas. Known for his self-centered meanness, even his most ardent detractors admit of his strong intellect and ability to debate.

Libertarians Rand Paul (senator from Kentucky) and Gary Johnson (former Governor of New Mexico) made little headway during the election. Martin O’Malley on the Democrat side wasn’t able to topple his Goliath Capricorn-establishment opponent Hillary Clinton or the anti-Capricorn establishment opponent Bernie Sanders. Pluto in Capricorn suggests O’Malley will be back in 2020.

Our past Capricorn presidents have been Millard Fillmore, Andrew Johnson, Woodrow Wilson and Richard Nixon. Which of these men could win an election today? Wilson and Nixon were also known for intense intellect and focus on policy. Fillmore and Johnson – I’ll have to read more on these guys. Or maybe there will be a Broadway play so I can save myself a few hours . . .

The King and the President

Don’t think I’m insulting Capricorn here. The attraction to Hamilton suggests the desire for the strength and executive ability of Capricorn. It also suggests a need for stability. As much as we claim to dislike government authority, part of us craves it.

Our conflicting desire for Capricorn and rebellion against it is best demonstrated by this awesome photo from December 21, 1970 as the sun was entering Capricorn (photo from Smithsonian magazine).

Two very famous Capricorns – President Richard Nixon and Elvis Presley – met in the White House and shook hands. These are the two faces of Capricorn influence. Capricorn climbs the mountain to get to the top. Nixon and Presley each climbed a different side of the mountain but ended up at the the same peak. As the saying goes, it can be lonely at the top and both men seemed to have experienced some isolation at the end of their lives.

Alexander Hamilton is the new Nixon-Presley of our Pluto transit of Capricorn. He’s a self-made man, statesman and developer of systems that provide security. And with the opening of Hamilton on Broadway, he’s also a rock star.