You Won't Believe What Jenna Bush Hager's Dad Said to Cohosting

Jenna Bush isn’t giving her dad a pardon.

Talking about Tom Hanks making an appearance in a music video by his son Chet Hanks, the fourth-hour host of TODAY mentioned that her father, the ex-President George W. Bush, likely wouldn’t have followed suit with such an action.

As she joked on the morning show’s March 31 episode, “Some dads, like mine, would have said no.”

As an ardent fan, I can’t help but reflect on the intriguing discussion between Al Roker and Craig Melvin, where Al expressed his belief that the 43rd president would have seized the opportunity to participate. However, Craig countered this by pointing out that this former POTUS was known for skipping family week, as evidenced by the recent stint of Jenna’s husband Henry Hager, sister Barbara Bush, and cousins Wendy Stapleton and Sam LeBlond on “TODAY with Jenna & Friends” as co-hosts.

Jenna agreed. ‘I ran into him over the weekend,’ she explained, ‘and I asked if he might be able to help with Father’s Day plans, but his response was somewhat uncertain – let’s say it’s a possibility.’

Although Jenna can’t make her father always be present, she hasn’t let that hinder her from divulging her distinctive childhood experiences as the eldest child.

On March 27, during Henry’s stint as co-host, the pair shared memories of their first kiss and some events that followed. The Texan humorously mentioned an unconventional location where he had to take a walk afterwards.

She playfully questioned, “Didn’t you exit the White House like a character from a movie, Honey?” To this, Henry replied, with a hint of embarrassment, “Darling…

Despite spending a significant part of her father’s eight-year term as President being occupied by college studies at the University of Texas, Jenna had a sufficient taste of life at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue to impart her insights to others.

In a 2017 letter to President Barack Obama’s daughters Malia and Sasha, she and her sister Barbara wrote, “You will be penning the tale of your lives. Despite standing in the shadows of your renowned parents, you will forever bear the memories of the past eight years with you.

Keep reading to learn more about others who’ve held the title of first kid…

(TopMob and Today are both part of the NBCUniversal Family.)

At the age of nearly thirteen, Chelsea Clinton resided in the White House together with her mother and father – then First Lady Hillary Clinton and President Bill Clinton.

And what does any tween girl need to do ASAP? Decorate her room, of course!

As an ardent Michael Jordan enthusiast, I proudly displayed a cherished poster of him among my family photos and friends, ensconced with some extra-sticky adhesive to preserve my pristine walls. (TopMob News interview, 2021)

During her White House residency, she often hosted slumber parties, where the guests would crave pizza, leading to quite a stir with the secret service, as her mother shared with James Corden in 2019. She also attended ballet lessons and participated in regular family meals.

In a conversation on the PEOPLE Every Day podcast in 2021, Chelsea (who has daughter Charlotte, sons Aidan and Jasper with husband Mark Mezvinsky) expressed that her parents typically returned to work after dinner. However, this period was considered as “a special family time” that was highly valued.

Before her father completed his term in office, Chelsea had already graduated from the private Sidwell Friends School in Bethesda, Maryland. Subsequently, she attended Stanford University and earned her bachelor’s degree in history. Later, she pursued advanced degrees: a Master of Philosophy from Oxford and a Master of Public Health from Columbia.

Chelsea often found herself being questioned about whether she had ever fled, but she clarified on PEOPLE Every Day that she had never run away. She understood the necessity of their inquiries and chose not to complicate their job or distress her parents by entertaining such thoughts.

In 2016, on The Alli Simpson Show, Chelsea described her childhood as “less extraordinary than some might think,” but she also acknowledged that being a part of White House and American history made it a unique privilege.

From the time of George H.W. Bush’s presidency, which was from 1989 to 1993, they were already familiar with the White House. However, when President George W. Bush and First Lady Laura Bush moved in, their daughters, Barbara Bush and Jenna Bush, were college students who were 19 years old at the time.

But as first kids, they were still in the spotlight from afar.

In 2001, they were both charged with minor consumption violations in the state of Texas. They respectively chose not to contest these charges and were given sentences involving community service. This led to a lot of media attention.

In their shared memoir, “Sisters First: Stories From Our Wild and Wonderful Life,” published in 2017, Jenna playfully commented that she found the cover of the New York Post more appealing. She appreciated it because it showcased a superior image (a big thank you) and referred to her as the witty “Jenna and Tonic.

In essence, when they were forced to handle things independently, without the assistance of a crisis manager or damage control specialists, they learned that even with our flaws, life continues as usual, according to Jenna’s words.

From that point on, Jenna’s journey towards earning her English degree from the University of Texas at Austin, and Barbara’s pursuit of a B.A. in Humanities from Yale, proceeded smoothly and uneventfully.

In their book, Jenna described them as perpetual practical jokers. For instance, Barbara once feigned falling off a golf cart at Camp David to amuse themselves at their mother’s expense, but it was really the Secret Service who got spooked.

In hindsight, Jenna admitted to Andy Cohen on Watch What Happens Live in 2020 that there was no blueprint or manual for their situation. Her father initially encouraged them to have a normal college experience, but soon realized that they were unable to do so because of their unique circumstances.

The twins, having served as first daughters for eight years, grew particularly watchful over their successors, Malia Obama and Sasha Obama. In a 2009 letter, Jenna and Barbara, themselves former first daughters, offered advice to the newcomers, acknowledging that joining such a club could sometimes be challenging. They urged them not to forget their father’s genuine character.

10-year-old Malia and 7-year-old Sasha Obama, accompanied by Michelle’s mother Marian Robinson, moved into the White House in 2009 when the Obamas took office. This made Sasha the youngest first child to reside there since the Kennedys with Caroline Kennedy (3 years old) and John F. Kennedy Jr (3 months old).

And so the quest to both protect and prepare them—for life as first daughters and beyond—began.

Michelle shared during the July 2024 episode of Melinda French Gates‘ Moments That Make Us podcast, “It was crucial for me to nurture them into independent, self-reliant individuals, given I’m their mother, a former president. However, society often judges swiftly if they don’t meet expectations and have a well-known surname. Therefore, they need to always present themselves with integrity.

She went on to say that Malia and Sasha had to learn to handle the intrusive attention graciously, while also finding a way to develop their own lives without being consumed by the limelight. Essentially, they needed to be quick-witted, self-assured, and independent from an early age, even though they lived in a house surrounded by staff like butlers, maids, and florists. However, I raised them with the understanding that they wouldn’t always live there or with me, so I had to prepare them to take charge of their own lives soon.

Inside those walls resided an ordinary-like family. It wasn’t until they moved into the White House in 2016 that they spent every day of the week together for the first time. This allowed them to have shared meals, with the president finding time to coach the girls’ teams and attend all their activities.

But the kids, she added, were also “ready to get out, just out from their parents’ house.”

Malia and her father both went to Sidwell Friends School. Malia graduated from there in 2016, during her dad’s second term. She took a year off, then joined Harvard University in 2017. Sasha started at the University of Michigan in 2019 but later moved to USC, where she completed her studies and graduated in 2023.

Following her college graduation in 2021, Malia took a job in the writers’ room for the Amazon Prime series “Swarm.” Using her professional name, Malia Ann, she then directed her debut short film titled “The Heart,” which was showcased at the 2024 Sundance Film Festival.

In a highly unusual statement, Malia expressed her surprise about embarking on this new experience for the first time during her red carpet premiere at the 50th Deauville American Film Festival in France. She admitted to feeling somewhat nervous yet predominantly thrilled when speaking with Paris Match.

The 26-year-old mentioned that she was sporting Vivienne Westwood, adding, “I may not be an expert on fashion, but I’m delighted to be a part of it.

In January 2017, as President Donald Trump settled into the White House, his wife, Melania Trump, remained with their 11-year-old son, Barron Trump, at Trump Tower in Manhattan. This was to ensure that he completed the school year before they both moved.

For the next four years, Barron went to St. Andrew’s Episcopal School, a private school located in Potomac, Maryland. He played soccer and continued to grow, eventually surpassing the height of both his parents. By the time he turned 18 in March 2024, he was reportedly 6-foot-7 tall.

Apart from sharing his father’s passion for golf, as mentioned by his mother, it is known that Donald Trump praised the computer skills of his youngest son in 2015.

Besides making appearances at the 2016 and 2020 Republican National Conventions alongside his father, Barron had largely stayed away from political activities. He was unable to attend the 2024 RNC (his mother stated that he had prior obligations), but on July 9 in Doral, Fla., he participated in his first Trump rally. Despite not delivering a speech, he greeted the crowd with waves and thumbs-up gestures.

Instead of following the traditional family pattern, where his father, half-brothers Donald Trump Jr. and Ivanka Trump attended University of Pennsylvania, or Eric Trump went to Georgetown, Barron chose a different path and enrolled at New York University’s Stern School of Business in the fall of 2024.

2025-04-01 22:47

You Won’t Believe What Jenna Bush Hager’s Dad Said to Cohosting

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