What Jenna Bush Hager Has Said About Getting Arrested (Twice)
Jenna Bush Hager's childhood was anything but ordinary. As the daughter of former President George W. Bush, Bush Hager has lived a wildly lavish life. But by no means did the NBC anchor have the typical freedoms that come with adolescence. During a segment on the "Today" show in August 2025, Bush Hager shared a TikTok from a Secret Service agent's daughter named Ashley, who detailed her strict upbringing living under the roof of a militant security official. "Ashley, I, too, couldn't get away with much because I was followed by men in fanny packs, which were concealing things," Bush Hager said of her own upbringing in the White House. Most notably, she joked about her two high-profile arrests. "I didn't get away with it, remember? I got arrested!" she told her "Today" co-hosts.
Bush Hager's controversial past defined her years before becoming a well-known news personality. In May 2001, the then-first daughter was arrested twice within the span of weeks. The first offense came after police found 19-year-old Bush Hager drinking a beer in a Texas bar. She was arrested for possession of alcohol as a minor. As a result, the "Today with Jenna & Friends" host was ordered to complete an alcohol awareness training program and community service, per a report from the BBC at the time.
No more than two weeks later, Bush Hager had another brush with the law after she and her twin sister, Barbara, attempted to order margaritas at a restaurant with fake IDs. In a chat with Hoda Kotb on the "Today" show, Bush Hager opened up about how deeply embarrassing the situation was for her family, as her father was president of the United States at the time. However, she said her father apologized to her for not being able to have a normal college life.
Her arrests were once brought up in front of a high-profile figure
As accepting as her father was about her teenage mistakes, George W. Bush hasn't let Jenna Bush Hager off the hook since her arrests. During a 2024 episode of "Today" with Hoda Kotb, Bush Hager reflected on an event she attended with her family, which was seemingly supposed to be about her father, but turned into a "one-hour roast" about her (via YouTube). Bush Hager explained how she was acting as the moderator for the night when former President Bush said in front of the guests, "Yeah, Jen, okay, why don't you tell everyone about the time you were arrested?" Ultimately, she described the night as "fun," saying, "I would ask questions, he would roast me a little."
Even better, former President Barack Obama was there to witness everything, and he approached Bush Hager after the event. He purportedly asked her why she participated in these kinds of events, knowing her dad would likely embarrass her. "He said, 'This must be hard for you,' and I said, 'Yes, it is,'" said Bush Hager. But the news anchor's relationship with her father is seemingly all about cracking jokes with each another. Bush has taken digs at his daughter's career, but she's had no problem giving it back to him.