Jenna Bush Hager recalls savage moment dad George W. mocked her in public over her arrest for underage drinking

Jenna Bush Hager has revealed that her father, George W., recently publicly mocked her about the time she was arrested for underage drinking at age 20, describing his ruthless comments as a “roast.”

During Monday’s episode of Today with Hoda & Jenna, the mother of three opened up to her co-host, Hoda Kotb, about her weekend, sharing that she traveled a lot and even spent time with her mom and dad, Laura.

“I was with my parents, which is always really funny because the dynamic… First of all, whatever moderator is moderating him…” Jenna began, as Hoda, 60, asked, “Who was the moderator?” to which Jenna shot back, “Me!”

She later said: ‘I would give a little explanation here and there when I felt like I could, but other than that he would always say, ‘Yeah Jen, okay, tell everyone about the time you got arrested,’ as Hoda, mother of two, burst out laughing.

Jenna, 42, continued: ‘It was just an hour-long roast. I asked questions, he roasted me a little bit, I asked a question, a light roast, and that’s what happened – but it was fun and funny.’

Jenna, pictured here with her father in January 2001, claimed the former president was “roasting” her at a recent event

The former first daughter then revealed, “And President Obama was there, so we saw him briefly, and he was like, ‘How do you do that? Why are you coming to do this?'”

A stunned Hoda asked, “Wait a minute, President Obama said this to you?” Jenna replied, “Yes, it did to me. He must have seen some of the roast and he said, ‘This must be hard for you,’ and I said, ‘Yes, it is.'”

Hoda was eager to compliment her co-host, then said, “By the way, I have to say, I don’t think you’ve seen a speech until you’ve seen this girl give a speech, because I’ve been to a number of your speeches.

“Usually she comes in and she’s like, ‘I don’t know what’s going to happen,’ and then 10 seconds later, you’ve got a crowd in your hand and you’re telling stories. Everything is unique and new.”

Jenna admits, “You know, usually I just stand there and start crying. [It’s] ‘Like all kinds of emotions, but it was a lot of fun and I’m happy to be back home.’

It’s certainly not the first time Jenna has mentioned her 2001 arrest on NBC’s morning show. Last year, she accused producers of the Today show of trying to shame her and her twin sister Barbara for drinking underage.

In November 2023, Jenna co-hosted the show with her twin sister Barbara Pierce Bush. They played a game called “First Loves,” which wasn’t as innocent as it seemed.

Jenna accused her producers of setting her up after they were surprised by a question that referenced their past experiences with the law.

Jenna and her twin sister, Barbara, were infamously caught underage drinking during their freshman year of college. The twin sisters are pictured in 2005 with their father

When Jenna hosted Today with Hoda in November 2003 and Jenna was with her sister, they were forced to play a game called First Cocktail I Ever Loved

“The first cocktail I ever loved… Wow,” said Barbara, standing in for Hoda.

“I think they’re trying to shame us,” Jenna chimed in. “With us being under the legal drinking age and being in possession of alcohol,” Barbara agreed. “Yeah, that was rude.”

The Bush twins were caught underage drinking in 2001 during their freshman year of college, just months after their father was sworn in as president.

Both women have been candid about being caught drinking underage, even writing about it in their 2017 memoir, Sisters First.

Jenna was a freshman at the University of Texas at Austin when she was first arrested by police for drinking beer at a club in April 2001. That same month, she pleaded guilty to a charge of possession of alcohol while prohibited.

She was ordered to pay $51.25 in court costs, perform eight hours of community service, and take an alcohol education course.

The following month, Barbara, a student at Yale University, was visiting Jenna in Austin when they were arrested for attempting to purchase alcohol at Chuy’s, a Mexican restaurant chain.

This happened after the manager alerted restaurant authorities that a group of people who did not look 21 ordered alcoholic drinks.