Jenna Bush Hager called George W. Bush crying over Hoda Kotb's 'Today' exit

Jenna Bush Hager cried for her father George W. Bush after learning that Hoda Kotb is leaving “Today.”

On Thursday's episode of “Today with Hoda and Jenna,” the two tearfully discussed the former president's reaction to the news that Kotb, 60, will leave the NBC show in early 2025.

“I don't know if you're embarrassed to say this or not, but I think you should,” Kotb told Bush Hager, 42.

Kotb continued, “You called your dad. And I remember you being scared when we first started working together.”

In tears, Bush Hager recalled a conversation with her 78-year-old father when she replaced Kathie Lee Gifford as Kotb's co-host of the entertainment-focused 10 a.m. “Today” show in 2019.

“I called my dad when I started. He said, 'I'm so happy for you – and Hoda is the star. You're going to be OK with this, right? You're going to be OK with sharing the spotlight with the star?'” Bush Hager said.

“I said, 'Yes, of course.'”

Bush Hager then announced that she had contacted the former president to discuss Kotb's exit from the show.

“I called him last night. At first he thought something really terrible [happened]like a lost loved one because I was so emotional,” she said.

“And he said, 'Oh, she's leaving because it's time and you're going to be OK. It's your turn. It's OK,'” Bush Hager said.

Kotb stood and clapped in response to Bush's comments.

“It's your turn. It's your turn,” she said, echoing the former commander-in-chief's words.

“And whoever sits in that seat is going to have the easiest job in the world because they're sitting next to you,” Kotb told Bush Hager, crying. “The only thing they have to do is not laugh so hard they pee their pants. That's all. They just have to hang on.”

Kotb told the former First Daughter that she was “a ray of hope” and that now it was “her turn.”

Bush Hager replied, “If I'm shining, it's because I'm sitting in your glow. We all are. We've all had five incredible years together.”

Kotb then asked the cameras to pan to the entire show's crew and applauded them.

“You are so popular and have made each and every one of us feel loved,” Bush Hager told her co-host. “We just can't imagine life without you – but the good news is we don't have to, because you'll be here for three more months!”

“I promise you,” Bush Hager continued, “the next three months will not be a crying fest. We will have fun. We will celebrate you.”

Bush Hager joined “Today” as a staff writer and anchor in 2009. After Giffords left, she began co-anchoring the fourth hour of “Today” with Kotb in 2019.

Kotb has been with NBC since 1998. She was a correspondent for “Dateline” before joining the “Today” team 10 years later. She has been co-anchor of the show's fourth hour since 2008.

The popular journalist announced her departure from “Today” on Thursday morning.

In a letter to Today staff, Kotb wrote, “I know I'm making the right decision, but it's a painful one. And all of you are the reason for it. They say two things can be right at the same time, and I feel that deeply right now. I love you, and it's time for me to leave the show.”

“My time at NBC was the longest professional love affair of my life,” Kotb said, adding that she decided to step away from the show to spend more time with her daughters Haley, 7, and Hope, 5.

When Kotb announced her departure, her co-hosts were there, including Bush Hager, Savannah Guthrie, Al Roker, Craig Melvin and Sheinelle Jones.

Although she is leaving “Today,” Kotb will continue to work for NBC in an unspecified capacity.