Jenna Bush Hager opened up about a major cause of tension with her dad, former president George W. Bush, during her younger years.

“There was a period of time when I made bad grades,” the TV host revealed during Friday’s episode of *Today With Jenna & Friends*. When guest co-host Sheinelle Jones appeared skeptical, Hager doubled down, saying, “They were bad.”

Jones then asked the mother of three how her parents, George and Laura Bush, would handle it.

“My dad would sit with me at that kitchen table and try to teach me math, and we’d get in big fights and I’d cry myself to sleep,” Hager, now 43, laughed.

Jones called the confession relatable, adding that she thinks it’s typical of kitchen tables all over the country at night.

Hager did not elaborate on exactly when the kitchen table meltdowns occurred, but she and her fraternal twin sister, Barbara, were 19 when their father’s first term as president began in 2001.

Hager married her husband, Henry, in 2008, and they have since welcomed three children: Mila, 12, Poppy, 10, and Hal, 6.

Despite the past arguments, Hager’s relationship with her father, now 79, remains strong.

In September 2024, she admitted that she called the former president in tears over the news that her former co-host Hoda Kotb would be leaving the show after 26 years with NBC.

“I don’t know if you’re embarrassed to say this or not, but I think that we should [talk about how] you called your dad,” Kotb recalled at the time, referencing Hager landing the co-hosting job in 2019. “And I remember when you first started working together with me, you were afraid, so she called her dad.”

Hager jumped in, recalling that George was happy for her but jokingly reminded her that NBC veteran Kotb was the star.

“Then I called him last night,” Hager divulged. “At first, he thought something really awful [happened], like I lost a loved one, because of how emotional I was.”

Hager continued, recalling how her father comforted and encouraged her.

“And then, he said, ‘Oh, she’s leaving, because it’s time, and you’re going to be fine. It’s your turn. It’s OK.’”
https://pagesix.com/2025/09/27/celebrity-news/jenna-bush-hager-reveals-what-caused-big-fights-between-her-and-dad-george/