Jenna Bush Hager Reveals Mom Laura Accused Henry Hager of Stealing While They Were Staying at the White House

Former first daughter Jenna Bush Hager has revealed how her husband, Henry Hager, landed himself in some very hot water with his then-future mother-in-law, Laura Bush, while staying at the White House ahead of their 2008 wedding.

Jenna, 43, opened up about the incident during a recent episode of "Today with Jenna & Friends," explaining that she had moved into 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue with her parents before tying the knot—and had invited Henry, 47, to stay with her at Christmastime.

"I lived with my parents for a very brief period because I’d written a book and I was on book tour, and I was going to move in with Henry before we got married," she explained.

The TV host—who now shares three children with Henry—recalled how they had enjoyed a night on the town, before returning to the White House, only to be met by a very upset Laura in the morning.

"My mom came in [to our room]—we may have been out the night before—and my mom came in and said, ‘Henry, I know what you did,’" she recounted, adding that Laura's unusually stern demeanor left her partner stunned.

Imitating her mother's furious tone, Jenna revealed that Laura told Henry: "I know what you did. You took Joseph."

She added that Henry was left flabbergasted by the accusation, admitting that he had no clue what Laura was talking about.

Eventually, they got to the root of the issue, with Laura going on to explain that the White House staff had been packing up the nativity scene from that year's official decorations, but had been unable to find the figure of Joseph.

“My mom thought Henry had come in after a couple beers and stolen Joseph,” Jenna revealed. “And he said, ‘On my word, I did not take Joseph, I promise you I didn’t.’ And my mom goes, ‘No, I know you did. I know you took Joseph.’”

Eventually, staff found the figure "under a bureau somewhere," proving Henry's innocence and refuting Laura's "false accusation." However, Jenna said she learned a very clear lesson from the incident: that her parents were ready for her and Henry to move into a home of their own.

"What that said was, ‘Ya’ll gotta get out of here. I’m tired of you getting in late. You could have done something like stolen Joseph and I’m getting grumpy with your towels on the ground and such,’" Jenna explained.

Luckily, Jenna and Henry tied the knot just a few months later at the family's 1,600-acre Texas ranch—and it seems that the tension between Laura and her son-in-law had evaporated by the time the big day rolled around.

Former President Bush proudly gushed about his excitement at welcoming Henry into the family in the wake of the ceremony, saying in a statement: "Our little girl, Jenna, married a really good guy, Henry Hager. The wedding was spectacular. It's just—it's all we could have hoped for.

"The weather cooperated nicely. Just as the vows were exchanged, the sun set over our lake and it was just a special day and a wonderful day and we're mighty blessed."

Interestingly, Jenna recently revealed her desire to move back to the Lone Star State after her run on "Today" ends, admitting that it is her "dream" to relocate to Texas, where she lived for many years—even while her father served as the 43rd president.

Jenna, who attended the University of Texas in Austin during her father's first White House term, moved to New York City in 2010 in order to be closer to her twin sister, Barbara Bush, who was already living in the Big Apple.

Then, in 2022, she and her husband swapped city life for a suburban property in Connecticut, where they have lived with their three children—Mila, 12, Poppy, 9, and Hal, 6—ever since.

Yet Jenna is already eyeing up her next move—explaining during an August episode of "Today with Jenna & Friends" that she has a "dream" of relocating to Texas in a bid to give her children a more normal life.

"I have this sort of dream—I just think everybody should have chapters in their lives ... I have a dream [and] I don’t know how realistic it is, but when the 'Jenna & Friends' chapter comes to a close…" she began, prompting her guest host, Matt Rogers, to question why "that would ever happen."

"Well ... linear television, baby!" Jenna responded, before continuing: "Who knows? But when I’m ready to go to my next chapter, I think it would be so nice to move back to Texas and let my kids—I went to a big public high school—have a different life."

The on-air host, who took over the fourth hour of "Today" when her former co-anchor, Hoda Kotb, stepped down from her decadeslong role at NBC in January, noted that she has a particular fondness for the city of Austin, where she and her sister lived while her father served as the governor of Texas from 1995 until 2000.

"Isn’t Austin great? I love Austin," Jenna confessed.

Of course, Jenna would need to convince her husband, Henry, who hails from Virginia, that a move to Texas is in the best interests for their family—particularly given that the couple has never actually lived in the state together.

The pair met back in 2004, when Henry was working for Jenna's father, and he popped the question to her three years later—after asking George for permission.

"He called my dad. He’s like, ‘I’d like to come speak to you.’ [My dad is] like, ‘I’m taking a nap. Come in a couple hours,'" Jenna recalled on the "Today" show. "So [Henry] had to sit and stew."

After the couple's wedding at the family's ranch in Crawford, TX, they then moved to Baltimore, where the former first daughter was working as a teacher, while Henry had a role with an energy company.

Soon after Jenna began contributing to the "Today" show in 2009, the couple made a move to New York, where they lived for many years, welcoming their first child, daughter Mila, in 2013.

For many years, the couple were neighbors with Jenna's on-screen co-star, Savannah Guthrie, before they made the decision to move to Connecticut—putting their Tribeca condo on the market for $5.4 million in 2022.

The property sold in October of that year for the much lower price of $4.9 million.

Jenna and Henry moved into a stunning six-bedroom property in Fairfield County; however, they have worked hard to keep details of the home's location under wraps.

Before moving out to Connecticut, the couple also owned a weekend house in Long Island, where they would base themselves during the summer, with Jenna making the commute into the city for her filming obligations as needed.

Speaking about their decision to purchase the home, Jenna admitted that she fell in love with the dwelling because it reminded her of Texas, telling Veranda magazine in 2019: "There was something about it that reminded me of Texas, of being outside.

"Even this close to the city, there was a remoteness to it."