Jenna Bush Hager Jokes About Past Arrests: ‘Couldn’t Get Away With Much’

Jenna Bush Hager has no issue poking fun at her past arrests.

Bush Hager’s transgressions came up during the Monday, August 11, episode of the Today show as part of the anchor’s “Morning Boost” segment while discussing a recent viral TikTok video.

“This is for anyone who thinks they were raised by strict parents. May I introduce you to Ashley Hicks,” Bush Hager, 43, told viewers. “She caught the attention of millions online sharing her experiences growing up with her dad, who just happened to be a secret service agent. She shares the typical teenage experiences that many got away with, but she never could.”

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Bush Hager — the daughter of former President George W. Bush — understood Hicks’ pain. (Hicks has also promised her TikTok followers an interview with her father.)

“Listen, Ashley. I, too, couldn’t get away with much because I was followed by men with fanny packs that were concealing things,” Bush Hager said.

Ashley Hicks has grabbed the internet’s attention by sharing the three things she could never get away with a former Secret Service agent dad.  : Courtesy @ashleyy4236 via TikTok

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Cohost Craig Melvin, however, had a different idea about Bush Hager’s past.

“I recall reading articles many years ago about you getting away with a fair amount,” Melvin, 46, quipped.

Bush Hager reminded him that she “didn’t get away with it” in the end. “I was arrested! There’s a mugshot that says I didn’t get away with it,” she added. “No, I wasn’t really arrested like that.”

Melvin noted that Bush Hager “turned out pretty well” despite her past mistakes.

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Bush Hager found herself in handcuffs twice in the same year. Her first offense took place in April 2001, when she was arrested on a misdemeanor charge for possession of alcohol under the age of 21 in Texas. Her second took place one month later. Bush Hager received another misdemeanor charge for using a fake ID to buy alcohol. (She pleaded no contest to both charges.)

“I didn’t actually go to jail, I just was arrested,” Bush Hager clarified to former Today With Jenna & Hoda cohost Hoda Kotb in 2023. “I wasn’t even arrested; I was never detained. I just got a minor in possession of alcohol when I was 20 years old because I ordered a margarita at Chuy’s with a fake ID.”

Bush Hager claimed that the waitress called the police because “she didn’t like my dad,” who was the president at the time.

“To her credit, that was dumb,” Bush Hager admitted. “I mean, my dad was the president.”