Jenna Bush Hager Shares a Wild College Adventure Before Her Dad Took Office

For most college freshmen, Election Night 2000 was a low-stakes event. But for Jenna Bush Hager, it was the night her dad, George W. Bush, became the 43rd President of the United States - and life as she knew it changed forever.

‘Mind Erasers’

Jenna, who was starting her freshman year at the University of Texas at Austin, shared on “Today with Hoda & Jenna” that her roommates didn’t quite know what to make of her at first. “Well, the president’s daughter is now their roommate,” co-host Hoda Kotb quipped, according to Decider, to which Jenna clarified, “Well, I wasn’t the president’s daughter yet, but I was right on the precipice.”

With the election results looming, Jenna’s roommates decided to lighten the mood. “On Election Day, they were like, ‘Girl, we got to get some mind erasers,’ which was a shot back in the early aughts…” Jenna said, as reported by TODAY, mimicking their Texas drawl. For the uninitiated, a Mind Eraser is a layered shot of vodka, coffee liqueur, and soda water that was apparently all the rage in the early 2000s. “So I had one and my mind didn’t erase,” Jenna joked, Decider reports.

The Last Hurrah: A Road Trip to Mexico

When her father officially became president-elect, Jenna’s roommates weren’t about to let her transition into a life with Secret Service protection pass without one final adventure. Their plan? A road trip to Ciudad Acuña, Mexico, to celebrate her last weekend of freedom.

“You drove across the border?” Hoda asked, according to TODAY, clearly shocked. Jenna confirmed, “I drove across the border to Acuña, Mexico. It was legal to drink there, so it felt safer.”

A Bar With a Slide and a Prayer of Gratitude

What does Jenna remember most about that night? A slide. Yes, the bar in Acuña had a slide, and it left a lasting impression - one of the only details she recalls from the trip. Reflecting on her younger self, Jenna clasped her hands in mock prayer and declared, “Thank God I’m alive. Thank you, God!” while the hosts bent over laughing, according to TODAY.

The impromptu trip marked the end of Jenna’s carefree college days. Shortly after, Secret Service agents became her constant companions. While Jenna may not recommend crossing borders for one last hurrah, her story proves that even future first daughters deserve a little youthful rebellion.

Because let’s face it: Sometimes, you just need a slide, a shot, and some good friends to take the edge off major life changes.

References: Jenna Bush Hager Took Shots And Drove To Mexico On Her “Last Weekend Of Freedom” Before Her Father Became President | Jenna Bush Hager reveals what happened on wild ‘last week of freedom’ after dad’s election