EXCLUSIVE: George W. Bush Was at Odds With Wife Laura When Twins Jenna and Barbara Were Busted for Underage Drinking — After Ex-Prez Battled His Own Alcohol Demons
George W. Bush has been married to his wife, Laura, since 1977.
July 7 2026, Published 3:55 p.m. ET
George W. Bush and his wife, Laura, have been married for nearly 50 years, but they found themselves fiercely at odds after their twin daughters, Jenna and Barbara, were both busted for underage drinking in 2001, according to an insider.
One day after the former POTUS turned 80 years old, RadarOnline.com revisits the married couple's different styles of parenting over the decades – and George's own past struggles his alcohol.
Inside Jenna and Barbara's 2001 Underage Drinking Citations
George W. and Laura Bush share twin daughters, Jenna and Barbara.
Jenna and Barbara were both given separate citations in Texas after being caught drinking booze underage when they were 19 years old.
Deeply concerned, Laura, now 79, reportedly want to put her foot down and practice some tough love with the twin girls, while George had a much more laid-back approach to the situation.
A source claimed the mother-of-two was "fit to be tied" about her husband's "attitude," but George simply didn't think that the girls needed "reining in."
'The Girls Have Their Father Wrapped Around Their Fingers'
The underage drinking situation was 'no minor squabble' between George and Laura, a source claimed.
"The girls have their father wrapped around their fingers," added the source in a resurfaced interview. "He and Laura are at loggerheads."
Meanwhile, a separate Bush family insider confirmed the situation was "no minor squabble" between Laura and George, comparing it more to a "battle royale."
George W. Bush Apologized to Jenna Bush Hager
Jenna Bush Hager later claimed her father, George W. Bush, apologized to her.
Years later, Jenna reflected on the incident, dubbing her behavior "so stupid" during an installment of Today With Hoda & Jenna.
"Barbara and I ... were like 19 and a half, maybe 20, close enough but not allowed (to drink)," she said back in 2022. "The fact that we thought we could do that just speaks to how (our parents) were like, 'Oh, you can be normal, it's OK.'"
She also recalled confessing that she had received an underage drinking ticket to her father in a phone call.
"When I called my dad to say, 'I'm really sorry' ... he said, 'No, I'm sorry,'" she explained. "He said, 'I'm sorry, I told you (that) you can be normal, and you can't. You can't order margaritas.'"
Laura Bush Warned to 'Divorce' George W. Over Drinking
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Jeb Bush advised Laura Bush to 'divorce' George before he quit drinking, according to an insider.
As Radar previously reported, George's own drinking seemingly caused tensions in his marriage once upon a time.
"When George was drinking heavily, he and Laura were having serious marital problems," an insider claimed. "Laura came to level-headed Jeb (Bush) for advice, and he told her to leave his brother for her own good."
However, things reportedly came to a head when Laura let it slip during an argument that Jeb had urged her to "file for divorce."
"Naturally, her husband exploded and his relationship with Jeb went from bad to toxic," added the insider at the time.
But when George was around 40 years old, he faced his own demons and made the decision to give up booze for good.
"I had too much to drink one night, and the next day I didn't have any. The next day, I decided to quit and I haven't had a drink since 1986," the ex-prez shared in a 2007 interview with ABC News. "It's a difficult thing to do, which is to kick an addiction."
