Since Donald Trump (06/14/1946, Gemini Dog) first attracted the world’s attention in earnest, during his successful run for US President in 2016, he has dominated the news almost continuously. Within and beyond the mainstream media, writers have repeatedly attempted to understand Trump’s distinctive personality and appeal in psychological terms. Unsurprisingly, astrology has barely rated a mention.

In fact, however, Trump’s combined sign of Gemini Dog offers potentially invaluable insights not available elsewhere. The sign of Gemini is famously mercurial, of course—not for nothing being symbolized by the Twins. A focus on individual identity, with experimentation of different selves that can seem unpredictable or temperamental to others, is par for the course. But there is something about the combination of this changeable energy with the indefatigable determination of the Dog that can make Gemini’s apparent instabilities especially prominent. Long before Trump’s about-faces and seeming volatility dominated the world stage, in 1992 fellow Gemini Dog, Prince (06/03/1958, Gemini Dog) changed his name to an unpronounceable symbol. Prince, who had a well-earned reputation for speaking in “cryptic riddles”, offered a characteristically obscure explanation for his name change, alluding to negotiations with his then record company, Warner Bros.:

I had to search deep within my heart and spirit, and I wanted to make a change and move to a new plateau in my life. And one of the ways in which I did that was to change my name. It sort of divorced me from the past and all the hangups that go along with it. [Warner Bros. and I] had some issues that were basically about ownership of the music and how often I was supposed to record and things like that. We got along otherwise. 

This sense of “truth” being operationalized for strategic or negotiation purposes has, of course, become all the more familiar in the age of Trump. 

In 2007, The New York Times described another person born under this combined sign, Naomi Campbell (05/22/1970, Gemini Dog), as, “[T]empestuous…fickle and grandiose…and ostentatious and evidently immune to some basic civic lessons.” The same article quoted a Vanity Fair columnist saying Campbell was, “[The] biggest brat in the modeling business, [and that] no money or prestige could further justify the abuse that has been imposed [on their staff and clients].” Lack of conformity to expected norms or behavior, not to mention hot-temperedness, thus became part of Campbell’s public brand at the height of her fame. Other Gemini Dog individuals, like actor Judy Garland (06/10/1922) or classical pianist Lang Lang (06/14/1982), have similarly developed public profiles whereby their giftedness is refracted through a sense of personal turbulence, inconstancy, or enigmatic resistance to the establishment. Celebrated golfer Phil Mickelson (06/16/1970), also a Gemini Dog, who has attracted intense controversy due to his involvement with the LIV and gambling addiction, said recently in a lighthearted moment, “I just say a bunch of stupid s—t that goes viral.”

For Trump himself, there is a strong argument that, just as the other examples noted above have done, he has instrumentalized his natural variability as a Gemini to achieve extraordinary impacts. Whatever one thinks of his methods—even critics acknowledge that he has effectively “remade the [US Republican Party] in his image.” He may enrage opponents, but from the perspective of group dynamics Trump has galvanized an unprecedented “base” of voters that may be continuing to expand. Critically, two of the defining characteristics of the Chinese sign of the Dog are a devotion to underdog causes and a talent for oration. Love him or hate him, Trump has become a guiding light for many voters who believe themselves to be underdogs (and many of whom may very well be, from the perspective of education and income). And he has done so through rallies and social media communications that reflect an incredible aptitude for persuasion and entertainment (if not conventional virtues like accuracy, politeness, tolerance, or propriety). 

On March 25, 2024, a criminal trial against Donald Trump began in New York. Now, bearing in mind the potential unpredictability of the Gemini Dog combined sign, it is not surprising that Donald Trump’s relationships tend to fluctuate over time. A New York Times journalist recently wrote, “Mr. Trump often assails people he used to praise and commends those he once pilloried.” That said, Trump’s energy matches with the key players in the Trump trial shed fascinating light on these relationships, and thus the evidence of key witnesses.

One key witness is David Pecker (09/24/1951, Libra Rabbit), a former editor of the tabloid publication, the National Enquirer. Pecker testified about so-called “catch-and-kill” practice of buying stories to prevent them being published. In this way, Pecker described, he was able to offer protection to friends such as Arnold Schwarzenegger (07/30/1947, Leo Pig), and of course Donald Trump. But more broadly, Pecker described a longstanding friendship between Trump and himself: 

[Trump] was very helpful in introducing me to other executives and other people in New York. And he would always advise me of parties or events or things that I would either go to or send, at that time, my editors to…It was a great mutual, beneficial relationship.

Looking at the energy match between Trump and Pecker, their friendship is anything but surprising. These two share one of the coveted Golden Nine connections. The Chinese pairing of Dog and Rabbit reflects Soulmate energy that can be demanding but has virtually unlimited potential for closeness. Of particular interest here is the Trine match of Trump’s Gemini with Pecker’s Libra. These two Air signs are bound together by a mutual fascination with intellectual rather than emotional matters. Pecker’s testimony about his approach to handling potential scandals seems to resonate with the kind of playful and enthusiastic engagement with cerebral banter that is to be expected from a bond between these signs, even if some outsiders might imply a lack of moral perspective.

Interestingly, Pecker also shares rare Golden Nine energy with a model who is important to the case against Trump, Karen McDougal (03/23/1971, Aries Pig). Pecker described buying a story alleging that Trump had had an affair with McDougal, in order to shield Trump from potentially damaging political fallout. The energy between Trump and McDougal is also very favorable. 

Two of the protagonists in the trial and its background, however, have noteworthy tension in their connection with Trump. First is Trump’s former lawyer, Michael Cohen (08/25/1966, Virgo Horse). Trump and Cohen’s relationship has infamously collapsed. Cohen was Trump’s personal attorney for over a decade, once saying he would “take a bullet for the president…[and] never walk away”. On the Chinese side, this is far from unexpected—the match between Dog and Horse is, in theory, one of the most trusted and rewarding in the Chinese zodiac. In the Western zodiac, however, Square energy can be the most difficult to handle there is. For Trump and Cohen, their Gemini/Virgo combination leaves them vulnerable to endless disagreements, even if it is predisposed to enable them both to grow as individuals. This week Cohen’s appearance in court included the jury hearing a secret recording he made, where Trump appeared to acknowledge the “catch-and-kill” payment made by the National Enquirer to Karen McDougal. So the Trump/Cohen relationship may not yet have hit its lowest point. 

Finally, at the heart of the trial against Trump is the allegation that adult film director/actor Stormy Daniels (03/17/1979, Pisces Sheep) received a substantial payment to “catch-and-kill” her story about an alleged dalliance with Trump (which he denies). Again, on the Chinese side Trump and Daniels’ Dog/Sheep connection is usually reliably harmonious. However, the Square combination of Gemini and Pisces almost inevitably causes some level of disturbance. In a 2018 appearance on Saturday Night Live, Daniels told a Trump-impersonating Alec Baldwin (04/03/1958, Aries Dog), “I know you don’t believe in climate change, but a storm’s a-coming.” 

Only time will tell just how right she was.