The Psychic Behind Ronald Reagan’s National Security Meetings

What Started with the Cold War Still Materialized

The Cold War was still a thought in the 1980s, and the decisions that were made in Washington could change the fate of many different nations. Ronald Reagan, the president, who was often known as the “great communicator,” but was criticized for his sparkle, had something secret that was going on behind the scenes. As military generals and other officials looked at strategies, there was something that was influencing President Reagan and his timing for national security meetings, diplomatic summits, and press conferences. This was his astrologer, named Joan Quigley.

For some, this might sound like a make-believe story, an astrologer looking at charts while nuclear bombs flew across oceans. The thing is, Joan Quigley’s involvement is well documented. In 1981, someone made an assassination attempt on Reagan, and his wife, the first lady Nancy Reagan, went to Quigley to get comfort and guidance. What started as a way of being reassured grew into a relationship that, though secret, lasted for years and years. According to the Los Angeles Times, Quigley even reportedly timed major White House decisions based on where and when the planets and stars were aligned.

When the White House Chief of Staff, Donald Regan, gave his memoir in 1988, this is when the world learned how influential Quigley was. He even went so far as to say, according to the Hoover Institution, that “every major move and decision was cleared in advance” with Quigly.

As you read this article, you will find out just who Joan Quigly was and how she became an important aspect in the lives of the Reagans. This article will show you why her store shows the importance of intuition and how psychic guidance can be used even for those with power.

Joan Quigley from San Francisco to the White House

Joan Quigley wasn’t someone who fit the stigma of what a psychic is. She didn’t carry around a crystal ball or have incense smoke swirling around her while she gave readings. Quigley was born in 1927, and she grew up in San Francisco with a family that was well-off. She even went and studied history at Vassar College. But art didn’t end up being her passion; but astrology did. In her townhouse on Knob Hill, she became someone who was known as an astrologer who used both traditional techniques and boosted them with modern delivery. Clients described her as someone who was witty, elegant, precise, and someone who treated the star charts as seriously as any other kind of data, according to Wikipedia.

It was as if her move into politics happened by accident. On “The Merv Griffin Show,” which was a popular television talk program, Quigley made an appearance in the 1970s. Nancy Reagan was watching TV at this time and saw the show, and she felt an instant connection with Quigley.

In March of 1981, when Ronald Reagan barely survived an assassination attempt, Nancy became nervous and worried about him. She went to Quigley for comfort and hoped that her gift of astrology could give her guidance and reassurance that her husband was safe.

Once she met with Quigley, they made a secret partnership. Quigley quickly became Nancy Reagan’s private advisor, using her astrology to influence things that happened in the White House. Quigley was often consulted by phone, and sometimes Nancy would call her multiple times a day.

Quigley even once claimed that she had a direct line to the presidency, not through the staff but through Nancy, who trusted her with her and her husband’s life. According to the Los Angeles Times, she talked about how she could reach the Reagans anytime she wanted, whether they were on Air Force One, at Camp David, or in the White House. This was a big deal because even some who worked in the White House didn’t have access to the Reagans as Quigley did.

Nancy talked about astrology as a way to help her have less stress after the assassination attempt. What started as a way for Ronald to know when to safely appear in public, Quigley’s role increased. She then started helping decide when press conferences should be scheduled, when Air Force One should take off and land, and even the right time to meet with world leaders.

Quigley went from Nob Hill in San Francisco to the center of politics. This wasn’t something that Quigley planned for her life, but this was a destiny from the universe. Quigley was able to give hope and peace in times of uncertainty, and this is what helped to make her a great help to the Reagans.

Quigley’s Influence in National Security and Astrology

Joan Quigley’s role was to give advice that helped to shape the timing of some of the most important events that happened during Ronald Reagan’s presidency. This became a controversy, not just that she would read the star charts, but that she had such power in what was happening from the White House. The chief of staff, Donald Reagan, talked about how Nancy wouldn’t allow the president to travel, to leave the White House grounds, or even to hold press conferences without Quigley’s approval, by looking on astrology. According to the Hoover Institution, in Regan’s 1988 memoir, he said, “virtually every major move and decision the Reagans made during my time as chief of staff was cleared in advance with this woman in San Francisco.”

Quigley agreed with this influence that she had on the Reagans. She told reporters that she would help them with debates, speeches, and even flights on Air Force One. She even claimed that she helped to advise on the scheduling of the United States and Soviet summits when tensions were so high during the Cold War.  According to People, she thought that her guidance helped to make conditions more favorable in diplomacy, and she talked Reagan into softening his rhetoric of the Soviet Union being an evil empire.

In 1986, the Reykjavik Summit that happened between President Reagan and Mikhail Gorbachev was influenced by Quigley’s astrological analysis. She discussed the fact that the president decided to stay longer in the talks than he had originally planned, and because of this, it set the stage for future arms reduction.

Critics pointed out, though, that there was no evidence that astrology influenced any policy in the White House. According to the Los Angeles Times, it was reported that Nancy Reagan said that astrology was never used to make major decisions of statecraft, but it was only used to help her schedule and protect President Reagan’s health and safety after the assassination attempt.

Even if it wasn’t, it is interesting to know that during the upheaval of the Cold War, when nuclear war threatened the world, that the timing of the president’s actions might have been influenced by Joan Quigley and her star charts.

Keeping Joan Quigley a Secret

Joan Quigley and the things that she did in the White House were kept a secret for years. When she would meet with the Reagans, it was with discretion. The phone calls that they made to each other were privately routed, and her name was never written in official logs, according to People. Nancy Reagan reportedly paid her, sometimes by check, for what she did, but she was not on the payroll with the White House. This was a way to make sure that her relationship with the Reagans was not in the books.

Reagan’s Chief of Staff from 1985 to 1987 was even kept out of the secret of Joan Quigley. They often described being frustrated when trying to make the president’s schedule, and that Nancy Reagan would intervene based on what Quigley said. Trips and meetings were often moved or rearranged, and sometimes press events were delayed or cancelled. The political strategists felt that the presidency was, in fact, being managed by the stars.

Regan eventually had a power struggle with Nancy Reagan in 1987, and that cost him his position. He wrote in his 1988 memoir “For the Record,” talking about Quigley, and this caused a political scandal. Newspapers and late-night comedians all became part of the controversy, sharing the idea of the “astrologer in the White House.”

The Los Angeles Times reported that Nancy tried to keep the scandal small and downplayed it, talking about how astrology was a way to cope after the stress of the assassination attempt. She said, “No policy or politics were ever influenced by Quigley’s charts, only scheduling.”

But then Quigley published her own memoir, “What Does Jones Say?”, where she claimed that her role in the White House was way more significant than Nancy Reagan said. She talked about how she influenced travel schedules, but also Reagan’s diplomacy, and helped him to talk differently about the Cold War, which pushed towards the arms reduction agreements, which later defined his years of presidency.

Whether Quigley exaggerated this or not, the truth is that one of the most powerful couples in the world thought enough about astrology to make it part of their governing process, period.

Can Astrology and Intelligence Be Used Together with National Security?

When you look at what was going on in the White House during the Reagan administration, the idea of an astrologer working in national security sounds like a political satire. While the CIA is briefing intelligence and the military analysts are monitoring the Soviet missile movements and economists are looking at global oil trends, Joan Quigley, an astrologist from San Francisco, is looking at planetary charts to help decide when it’s safe for Air Force One to take off.

Skeptics might look at this and think how absurd it is, but when you look closer, you see that astrology wasn’t being used to write policy, but it was just being used to time policy. Timing is something that is crucial when it comes to politics. Knowing when to announce a treaty can change how the media covers it, and arriving at a summit during symbolic timing can show power. Even when looking at military strategy, timing is important. Joan Quigley’s charts can be looked at as a symbol that was complementing traditional intelligence and not trying to override it.

Quigley talked about how her guidance helped the Ronald Reagan to be softer towards the Soviets and took credit for getting the president to stop saying “evil empire,” instead turning to better diplomatic communication, according to People. Even though we’re not sure that this is totally accurate, it does show the possibility that symbolic and intuitive guidance could help leaders to make better decisions by acting with more caution and positivity when times are full of tension.

When we look at modern leadership today, it often talks about multiple intelligences, such as rational, emotional, and intuitive. The intelligence agencies will give rational data, but psychologists and counselors help with emotional stress, and psychics and astrologers can give intuition and help people to reframe their thinking. By looking at the events and using a symbolic map of different cycles and archetypes, leaders are able to look at things from different perspectives.

When looking at Nancy and Ronald Reagan, Joan Quigley didn’t replace the national security briefings, but she just added more meaning that helped the Reagans feel more reassured. Reassurance in the midst of war, politics, and high-profile situations isn’t a small thing. Leaders don’t just have information, but they also need to be confident in the decisions that they make. If astrology and the charts helped to give the Reagans confidence, it was more than a superstition, but it was part of psychology and leadership.

Why People Still Believe in Psychics After Joan Quigley and Her White House Role

People are interested in Joan Quigley and her role in the White House because even people at the highest levels of power often want reassurance beyond what logic can offer. When we look at Ronald and Nancy Reagan, we know that they had the best intelligence service in the world, top advisors, and detailed briefings. But when the 1981 assassination attempt happened, they were looking for something more personal and more spiritual to fit what they needed.

Why did the Regans turn to Joan Quigley? The truth is, no matter how much data that you have, when you’re fearful of something, this data isn’t going to take it away. Nancy Reagan turned to astrology because it offered her a framework to keep her husband safe. In a world that seemed unpredictable. The charts that Joan Quigley looked at weren’t just about the planets, but they were about helping the Regans be in control. Whether this control was real or perceived, it empowered the Regans just like it can empower other leaders to act in the right way and to make the right decisions.

Here are some reasons why people still turn to psychics today:

Uncertainty Creates Meaning
When the future feels shaky, people look for patterns. Tarot, horoscopes, or psychic visions step in to give a story when the facts alone feel too heavy. It’s not about ignoring data, but it’s about needing a thread of meaning to hold onto.

Psychics Bring Emotional Steadiness
Numbers and reports tell us what’s happening. A psychic helps us deal with how it feels. For Nancy Reagan, Joan Quigley wasn’t just an astrologer. She was someone who gave comfort during moments when the weight of the presidency was crushing.

Belief Strengthens Resolve
Psychology research shows that faith of any kind, religious, spiritual, or intuitive, can lower stress and boost resilience. Leaders may lean on psychics not because it’s “logical,” but because believing in something bigger makes them braver when making tough calls.

History Has Always Mixed the Two
Rulers have turned to seers, oracles, and signs for thousands of years. Queens sought omens, generals looked to the skies, and kings listened to dreams before battle. Quigley wasn’t strange or unusual; she was part of a very old pattern.

The Takeaway
It’s not that astrology sets foreign policy. It’s that even at the highest levels, leaders are still human. They need more than facts, but they need reassurance, symbols, and hope. Sometimes, even in a room full of experts and data, the heart just wants to know the stars are on its side.

Skeptics and Using Astrology for High-Stakes Situations

Not everybody liked the idea of astrology being used in the White House. In his memoir, when Donald Reagan talked about Joan Quigley’s role, it caused a lot of backlash. Critics talked about the Reagans for using superstition when they did their statecraft. Even political cartoonists laughed at the president who was being guided not by generals but by the stars and horoscopes. People warned the public that relying on astrology even for scheduling could undermine America’s credibility with the world.

Of course, astrology has been criticized as a pseudoscience for years and years, and this skepticism is nothing new. Even the predictions seem vague and seem like they could fit almost any outcome. People were even concerned about the secrecy. They wondered if Quigley’s role in helping with the presidential timing was so important, why didn’t they tell the public? They wondered if this kind of influence needed to have checks and balances or if it could pose some kind of risk.

In her memoir, though, Quigley insisted that she never dictated any kind of policy, but offered cosmic timing to help Nancy choose when she should take action. To her, this was no different than talking to a doctor about a health concern or talking to a strategist about optics, but it just offered a different perspective.

The thing is that skeptics argue that astrology doesn’t predict outcomes, and even though in a literal sense they’re right, but believers argue that astrology gives context, symbolism, and emotional reassurance that are valuable. Timing a speech won’t change the content, but if it helps the president to feel aligned and confident, then that’s important in itself.

Using astrology isn’t a risk, but what becomes a risk is when people become too reliant on it. Just like having too much reliance on data models or polls can also mislead leaders, so can only depending on the stars. The best way is to use psychic guidance in one way and to balance it with evidence and accountability in the other way.

The situation with Joan Quigley shows us that leadership isn’t all about being rational and that even presidents need to use faith and feeling when they have to deal with uncertain times. Instead of dismissing astrology, people need to see it as a symbol that can help and be useful when paired with reason. But just like anything else, astrology not checked can be just as dangerous as not checking data or logic.

Why Intuition Can Be Used in Modern Leadership Today

Some people might just look at Joan Quigley’s role in the White House as part of her 1980 story, but the truth is that her role resonates even today. CEOs, leaders, and even influencers turn to psychics for guidance. Even though sometimes the terms like “executive coaching” or “futurist strategy” are used, the power is still the same.

Many tech entrepreneurs have admitted to using mindfulness meditation, astrology apps, and even psychic readings in Silicon Valley. Astrology is more digitized today than ever before, with apps like “Co-Star,” “The Pattern,” and others. These are apps that have become popular with millennials and Gen Z. If younger people are starting to see that using data with destiny is so important, why is it so surprising that leaders would do the same?

All around the world, political figures have been rumored to talk to psychics. Margaret Thatcher, the former British prime minister, reported that she had an interest in astrology. India’s leaders, who were part of a culture that had deep roots in astrology, admitted to consulting astrologers before any national events or major elections. This shows that adding intuition and governance isn’t just something that happens in the United States, but it’s happening all over the world.

In the business world, making decisions is unavoidable. This is why it’s so important to understand how valuable intuition is. Business schools are starting to teach classes on intuitive leadership, saying that having a gut instinct can be better than data models when trying to deal with things that are uncertain. This shows that when Nancy Reagan went to get help from Joan Quigley, she was just looking for a different perspective on what was right for her and what was going on in life.

Even though Joan Quigley, in her relationship with the Reagans, looks crazy to some, when you look at it from a different perspective, you see that when times are stressful and when there are moments of high stakes, leaders don’t generally just rely on logic. These leaders often look for narratives, symbols, and even psychic guidance to help them get ready before they make decisions that will affect millions of people.

John Quigley’s influence on what happened in the White House didn’t just happen because of the Cold War; it happened because it’s a leadership trend that is still happening today when leaders are seeking psychic help in times of high-stakes situations.

What You Should Do When Seeking a Psychic When Times Are Hard

Sometimes, when we look at stories like Joan Quigley’s and the Reagans, it makes people wonder how someone can work with a psychic and feel so confident in them. This could be a president who is dealing with war and other global situations, or someone just trying to know what career steps they should take next. The truth is, a psychic can give you the best answers when you aren’t replacing them with logic and common sense, but you are supplementing those things. Here’s how to find the right psychic guidance!

Pick Someone You Trust
Not every psychic is the right fit. The best ones are professional, private, and have a good reputation. Quigley stood out because she was steady, respectful, and treated astrology like serious work, not a sideshow. A good psychic won’t tell you what you must do. Instead, they’ll share ideas you can think over.

Ask Better Questions
Psychic guidance works best when you keep the questions open. Instead of saying, “Should I launch this project now?” you could ask, “What energy supports me moving forward with confidence?” That way, the focus is on perspective and growth, not on handing your power away.

Use Both Intuition and Logic
Even in the White House, Quigley’s advice never replaced intelligence briefings. It was more like an extra layer that helped Nancy Reagan feel calmer about timing. The same works today: use the data and facts you have, and let psychic input give you another angle to consider.

Don’t Give Away Your Power
The biggest mistake people make is leaning too heavily on a psychic. Their role is to shed light, not to run your life. Think of them like a consultant. Their words matter, but the final decision is yours.

Remember the Emotional Side
Sometimes the biggest value in psychic work isn’t the prediction, but it’s the comfort. Leading anything, whether it’s a family or a business, can feel lonely. Having someone who listens and offers reassurance can make it easier to think clearly and move forward with less fear.

When approached this way, psychic advice becomes a compass, not a cage. It’s not about giving up control, but it’s about seeing your choices in a wider light and remembering that you’re still the one steering the ship.

Final Thoughts: Quiet Influence of Intuition and Faith

Joan Quigley was known for her quiet influence on the Reagans. Her influence on what happened in the White House shows us that history isn’t just about spreadsheets or strategies, but it’s also about faith and intuition. We see in this article that humans need to be reassured when things are confusing or when the stakes are high.

Those who are critics might look at Quigley regarding the Cold War politics as an astrologer who was giving guidance while missiles were pointed across the oceans. Those who believe in psychic powers, though, feel that she represents something deeper. Her work is proof that even the president needs to have intuition when data doesn’t take away the uncertainty of life.

Whether everything that was said was true or not quickly left a mark. Whether the timing of Air Force Ones or the meetings, or whether confidence was needed before big summit meetings, Quigley showed that psychic counsel and political leadership can work together. She didn’t replace the strategists or the generals, but she offered a different type of meaning, a voice that could help shape how the president made decisions.

Power doesn’t make people less human, and the real lesson is that if anything turns a person to omens, guidance, or hope beyond rational thinking, it’s power. The tarot cards, stars, or even a psychic vision can help people to take steps of courage, even though it isn’t about dictating destiny.

Quigley’s relationship with the Reagans wasn’t just about astrology in the White House, but it’s how looking at deeper truth can shape the actions and even shape history. When power and the stars meet together, even if it’s controversial, these things can remind people that there is more to life than just logic. Intuition, fate, and free will all work hand in hand.