Jenna Bush Hager says her dad George W Bush 'thought it was funny' after she stuck her tongue out at reporter
Former President George W Bush's daughter, Jenna Bush Hager, on Tuesday night, September 15, opened up about how her father felt after the infamous picture of her sticking her tongue out at a reporter was plastered all over the news media in 2004. Jenna, who co-hosts 'Today with Hoda & Jenna' on NBC, made the revelation while appearing on 'Watch What Happens Live'.
Host Andy Cohen, during the segment, asked the 38-year-old about how her father reacted when she was caught sticking her tongue out at reporters during his reelection campaign in 2004. Jenna said: "I was with my dad and my sister, and I was like, 'People don't even know what's going on in here, like watch this', and Barbara and I constantly harassed [my father] and tried to make him laugh, and then I was down in the hotel gym doing the elliptical and I looked up on the TV and there was like my little face with a spotlight on it, and it was on the local news."
"I was like, 'Oh no, I better get back up to the hotel room and tell Dad that this thing went out'," she recalled. However, she said that her father was not bothered at all by it. "My dad was just like, 'Jen, this is so typical.' He thought it was funny. I think he really wanted Barbara and me to have normal childhoods, and we did until he became president. There's no guidebook, but his whole thing was like, 'Y'all can be normal college kids. You go be you,' and then he realized pretty soon after that that we really couldn't be normal college kids," she added.
Jenna also talked about the "sisterhood" she shares with other former first daughters. When asked whether she had a relationship with former Presidents Bill Clinton's daughter, 40-year-old Chelsea, and Barack Obama's daughters, 22-year-old Malia and 19-year-old Sasha. She responded by saying that she does. "We really do, in some ways. We reach out to each other," she said. "Chelsea and I see each other around — well, we used to. Now, I don't see anybody. But we used to see each other around New York City. And I reach out to the Obama girls and vice versa. But we do."
When asked if she knew Amy Carter, another former first daughter, Jenna said: "I met Amy Carter once. I did a show on Christmas at the White House and I got to meet her. But, no, I don't know her that well. I really don't. I should reach out."
When Jenna and her twin sister Barbara were preparing to leave the White House in 2009, they warmly welcomed the Obama daughters to the White House with a letter after Obama was elected president in November 2008. The pair reportedly gave Malia and Sasha another letter right before the Obamas left the White House.
Former First Lady Michelle Obama has also often mentioned Jenna, Barbara, and Chelsea for helping her daughters during their stay in the White House. Michelle, during an appearance on 'Good Morning America' in 2018, had said: "I love those girls. I will love them forever for what kind of support they provided to my daughters throughout that."
Reports stated that Chelsea also used to be in good terms with President Donald Trump's daughter Ivanka before they had a falling out during the 2016 election. It also appears unlikely that Jenna and Barbara will share a close bond with either Ivanka or Tiffany considering Trump has slammed both late George HW and George W Bush during his first term.