From 2001 to 2009, George W. Bush's family acted as the face of the nation, more so than his father George H.W. Bush's presidency from 1989-1993. He was joined by wife and First Lady Laura Bush and their twin daughters, Barbara Pierce Bush and Jenna Bush Hager. Despite causing brief scandals in their young adult years, since then, both Barbara and Jenna have grown into becoming successful media personalities and started families of their own.
Fraternal twins Barbara and Jenna, 43, were born on November 25, 1981 to George, now 79, and Laura, now 78. They were raised in Midland, Texas, where the couple had settled, and were primarily raised in the Lone Star State, before dividing their time between the White House for their grandfather and father's presidencies and the family vacation home, Prairie Chapel Ranch.
Since then, they've each found different ways to make their own mark in the spotlight, especially through their appearances on TV, work as authors, and their illustrious legacy. Read on to learn more about the twins' lives since entering the spotlight as "first daughters," plus their own families…
After graduating from Yale University and then earning an MPA from the Harvard Kennedy School, Barbara devoted much of her time to working with AIDS patients in Africa, an interest that emerged when she joined her family to launch the Emergency Plan For AIDS Relief. She also worked with the Cooper Hewitt and Smithsonian Design Museums.
In 2009, she and Jenna co-founded Global Health Corps, a non-profit that she now serves as the president for. She was their CEO for its first nine years and still remains on their board of directors. The organization describes itself as a "leadership accelerator mobilizing a powerful network of health equity changemakers," devoted to strengthening the network of frontline healthcare workers. It currently has over 1200 members.
Barbara serves on a number of additional boards, including the Board of Trustees of Partners In Health and the Board of Directors of Friends of the Global Fight for AIDS, TB, and Malaria. While she (and her sister Jenna) have identified themselves as independents, she endorsed and campaigned on behalf of Kamala Harris in the most recent presidential election.
In 2018, Barbara married Craig Louis Coyne, a screenwriter, after less than a year together. Their small wedding ceremony only saw 20 attendees, primarily so her grandfather George H.W. Bush could attend (before his passing a month later). They held a second ceremony six months later. They welcomed a daughter, Cora, in September 2021, and a son, Edward, in August 2024.
After graduating from the University of Texas at Austin, Jenna first devoted herself to teaching. She worked as a teacher at the Elsie Whitlow Stokes Community Freedom Public Charter School for a year and a half, also working with UNICEF and a charter school in Baltimore. She also turned her attention to writing, authoring the non-fiction book Ana's Story: A Journey of Hope in 2007.
In 2009, Jenna began working as a correspondent with NBC, beginning as a contributor to the TODAY Show. She would frequently fill in as a morning correspondent for the prime 7-9 AM hours, as well as for Kathie Lee Gifford or Hoda Kotb on the Fourth Hour of TODAY. In 2019, she was named Kathie Lee's replacement on the Fourth Hour, which effectively became TODAY with Hoda and Jenna.
The pair continued their partnership for five years, experiencing motherhood together, personal ups and downs, and even authoring several children's books while working as co-anchors and close friends. In January 2025, Hoda left TODAY, and the show has since been rebranded to TODAY with Jenna & Friends, including a revolving list of co-anchors that have included her family members too.
In 2004, during her father's presidential campaign, Jenna met Henry Chase Hager while he was working for her father. The pair began a relationship not long after, eventually tying the knot in 2008 at Prairie Chapel Ranch. They've since welcomed daughters Mila (born in April 2013) and Poppy (born in August 2015), and a son named Hal (born in August 2019).
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