Jenna Bush Hager says it was ‘naive’ of her dad George W. to promise that she could ‘live a normal life’ while he was President – as she opens up about the lasting impact of dealing with ‘terrible’ public scrutiny as First Daughter

Jenna Bush Hager has told how her father, former President George W. Bush, “naively” promised her and her twin sister Barbara that they could lead “normal lives” while he was in the White House.

The Today star, 41, reflected on the public criticism she faced as the first daughter and how it taught her resilience during a cover interview with People magazine, saying she no longer cares what people say about her.

Jenna and Barbara were seniors at Austin High School in Texas when their Republican father ran against Democrat Al Gore in the 2000 presidential election.

“We were 18 and he knew how much we just wanted to go to college and live a normal life,” she recalls. That was his promise to us: “Don’t worry. You can live a normal life.” Which in the end was not quite true. To be honest, maybe we were all a little naive.’

The Today star reflected on the public criticism she faced as the first daughter and how it taught her resilience during a cover interview with People magazine

When President Bush was sworn in in 2001, she was a freshman at the University of Texas at Austin, while her sister was at their father’s alma mater, Yale University.

Jenna was so focused on her college life that she ignored a call from actress Katie Holmes, who wanted help preparing for her role in the 2004 film First Daughter.

“I was in the library living a normal life as a freshman,” she explained. “I had a feeling she’d be disappointed with whatever she saw.”

Like many college students, the Bush twins were busted in 2001 for underage drinking, but their indiscretions made international headlines.

Jenna had previously shared how her father had apologized to her for telling her she could be a normal student when she couldn’t.

“The world expected us to be perfect,” she told People. “But our parents didn’t, which is definitely the best blessing they could have ever given us: the freedom to just be ourselves and make mistakes.”

Jenna said she was deeply hurt by the public criticism at the time, but she realized it made her stronger and shaped her into the person she is today.

“There’s something about growing up and having horrible things said about you, making mistakes in public, then being able to bounce back and get some resilience from that that makes me feel like I can live a very joyful life ‘, she said. “Because I don’t care what people say.”

Jenna and her twin sister, Barbara Bush, were college freshmen when their father was first sworn in. He was sworn in for a second term in 2005 (pictured)

“We were 18 and he knew how much we just wanted to go to college and live a normal life,” she told People. That was his promise to us: “Don’t worry. You can live a normal life.” Which in the end was not quite true. We may have all been a little naive, to be honest’

Jenna said she was hurt by the public criticism at the time, but it made her stronger. She explained that she no longer cares what she shares about herself, but that she tries to “control it a bit” when talking about her three children, Mila, who is ten, Poppy, who is eight, and Hal, who is four.

The mother-of-three added that she no longer cares what she shares about herself, saying she’s “quite an open book.”

Over the past year, she has revealed that she went commando at a dinner with King Charles, visited a nude beach while her father was president, and that her now-husband, Henry Hager, was secretly spending the night at the White House.

Jenna said the only time she tries to “rule a bit” is when she talks about her three children, Mila, ten, Poppy, eight, and Hal, four.

She remembered how she upset Mila a few years ago when she read the homesick letter her oldest daughter had written in sleep camp on the Today show.

‘It was my choice to share it,” she said. And then Mila was embarrassed. She was like, “Why would you share that? Why would you do that? Don’t ever do that again.”

Jenna shared on the Today show on Wednesday that her husband, Henry Hager, has playfully insulted her over her People cover

“Henry keeps going, ‘There’s Jenna. She’s not afraid to be herself. There’s Mother. She’s still not afraid to just be herself,'” she told her co-host Hoda Kotb

Mila “took revenge” on her mother a year later when she came on the show and dropped “truth bombs” on her by saying she “never wears underwear.”

“I think it was such a good lesson because it was such an innocent, silly topic,” Bush Hager said. “But it helped me realize that sometimes it’s something I had to work on to share other people’s stories, if they don’t want them shared.”

Jenna’s co-host Hoda Kobt celebrated her and her achievements on the Today Show Wednesday, saying she “deserves to be on the cover of People magazine.”

When asked about her family’s reaction to the spread, she shared how her husband playfully berated her about the cover phrase, “I’m not afraid to be myself.”

“Henry keeps saying, ‘There’s Jenna. She’s not afraid to be herself. There’s Mom. She’s still not afraid to just be herself,'” she said.