Jenna Bush Hager spoke openly about how her grandfather George HW Bush took her on a Disney cruise after losing the 1992 presidential election as an incumbent.
The Today star, 42, reminisced about the surprising family vacation while playing ‘Hot Takes’ with co-host Hoda Kotb and guest Joel McHale on Tuesday’s show.
When asked to share his opinion on cruises, the actor joked that went to a topic with Bush Hager’s paternal grandparents, former President Bush and First Lady Barbara Bush.
“I actually went on the Disney cruise with my grandparents,” she said, much to their surprise, but added that they didn’t realize it would be themed.
Jenna Bush Hager, 42, revealed on the Today show that her grandfather, former President George HW Bush, took her on a Disney cruise after losing the 1992 election.
The Today star recalled the surprising family vacation while playing ‘Hot Takes’ with co-host Hoda Kotb and guest Joel McHale.
“He had lost the presidency and thought a good way to make the transition would be to take us on the Disney cruise,” Bush Hager explained.
McHale struggled to wrap his head around the idea of the 41st president being a passenger on the popular cruise line.
‘Did your grandparents just go on a cruise ship with 3,000 other people? And the president was sitting there? he asked.
“Well, he had lost the presidency and thought a good way to make the transition would be to take us on the Disney cruise,” Bush Hager explained, as she and Kotb burst into laughter.
McHale joked that “this is the book I want to read” before asking more questions about his time on the cruise.
“So you would stand in line to eat and they would say, ‘There’s the president. There he is,” the Soup star asked Bush Hager, who responded, “Yeah, yeah.”
“That’s amazing,” the comedian said.
McHale was also asked to weigh in on Bush Hager’s ‘iconic Christmas party photo’ during the segment.
“Y’all, this is cruel,” she said after producers showed a photo of her posing with her grandparents and twin sister, Barbara Pierce Bush, at the White House in 1991.
Bush Hager noted that his grandparents didn’t know the cruise would be themed. A Disney Magic cruise in Grand Cayman in February 2024
‘Did your grandparents just go on a cruise ship with 3,000 other people? And the president was sitting there? McHale asked.
The comedian was also asked to weigh in on Bush Hager’s “iconic Christmas party photo” from 1991 during the segment, joking that she looked like “a McDonald’s employee.”
McHale noted that Bush Hager’s father, George W. Bush, was also president. “My father sold commercial real estate and he was pretty good at it, but he wasn’t the damn president,” he said.
While the rest of the family wore red, she wore a bright yellow button-down shirt and a floral tie paired with gold wire-rimmed glasses.
“So what’s your opinion on Jenna’s looks?” Kotb asked, joking, “She’s the guy.”
“I’m the guy in the mustard tie,” Bush Hager reiterated.
McHale put a lot of thought into her Christmas look, saying, “That’s where the rest of the family got a memo that said they had to wear red for the photo and you said you were going to dress like…”
“I think he’s a McDonald’s employee, which is cool,” he added. “It looks like you run a McDonald’s right there.”
McHale later noted how “crazy” it was that Bush Hager’s father, George W. Bush, was also president.
“My father sold commercial real estate and was pretty good at it, but he wasn’t the damn president,” he said. ‘Congratulations. Do you tell your husband, “You’re not the president, so you could work a little harder”?
‘Sometimes!’ Bush Hager responded.