Ex-prez’s spawn Jenna Bush on the job in Belle Glade
Tags: Barbara Bush, Belle Glade Elementary School, George W. Bush, Gisselle Gonzalez, Jenna Bush, Laura Bush, Matt Lauer, Ritz Carlton, Today
| Thursday 24 September 2009 9:59 am
Jenna Bush at Belle Glade Elementary Thursday morning (Brandon Kruse/The Palm Beach Post)
After a good night’s rest at the Ritz-Carlton Palm Beach, former first daughter Jenna Bush and her Today crew Thursday ended up in the unlikely location of Belle Glade.
Bush, who inhabited the White House for eight years with dad George W. Bush and mom Laura Bush, recently was hired as reporter on Matt Lauer’s NBC morning show.
Her mission on her second week: To interview and narrate a taped reportage on the plight of little Gisselle Gonzalez, a brain cancer-stricken pupil at Belle Glade Elementary School.
And if Bush had any difficulty navigating the gap between the posh $500-a-night Ritz — a rare treat for NBC crews in this economy — and the county’s poorest farming community an hour west, it didn’t show.
Wearing shapeless pants above her belly button, a purple top and black Chuck Taylors, the 27-year-old wasn’t immediately recognizable as she stood in the back of the school’s cafeteria as the school feted Gonzalez. The public, after all, mostly remembers her as the cute, mischievous teenager who shared the occasional bad girlz spotlight with twin Barbara.
“It’s not about me,” Jenna said when Page2Live approached her for a chat that ended up lasting 10 seconds. “It’s all about Gisselle today, not me.”
Bush appeared shocked when I told her that several TV stations were at the school partly because of her.
For more on this story, extra pictures and the poll, look below or click
“We’re so excited having her that we could burst our buttons,” said Belle Glade Elementary music teacher Carol Schmidt. “The more exposure we get, the greater the benefit for Gisselle and her family. There hasn’t been one negative comment about her being George Bush’s daughter.
Jenna Bush has been the consummate professional on the gig, crew photographer Raul Hernandez said. On Wednesday, Bush interviewed Gisselle’s parents in their trailer park.
“You could tell she was very emotional about this little girl,” Hernandez said. “But she (Jenna) held it together really well. She was doing her job. She’ll be a great reporter.”
There are good reasons for anyone to get emotional covering what could be the last days of a child whom doctors can no longer help.
Thursday was deemed Princess Gisselle’s Day at the school. The six-year-old guest of honor wore a princess outfit as she and her parents, Rita and Jose, were taken to the school in a limo. Once inside, nearly 500 kids and teachers were waiting for them in the cafeteria, which was made to look like a castle. There were marching bands, cheerleaders, skids, dancing and food. The celebration was also a $5-per fund-raiser for Gisselle’s parents, on whom her illness has taken a huge financial toll.
“Her mom always says Gisselle’s a diva, a princess,” said Assistant Principal Thelma Jackson. “So we came up with the theme.”
There was no indication today when Jenna’s segment will air on Today.
Loading ...
Bush leans over Gisselle's wheelchair (Brandon Kruse/The Palm Beach Post)
Bush at Belle Glade Elementary this morning (Brandon Kruse/The Palm Beach Post)
Class act. Let’s see how many button heads are going to criticize her on account of her Dad.
When’s the last time a local reporter stayed at the Royal Inn? Or Howard Dean? Or another member of the Democratic Party? Oh, I thought so.
Let’s see if you ever call Obama’s children… “Obama’s spawn”.
HACK!
“There hasn’t been one negative comment about how she is George Bush’s Daughter” Until you try to make something more out of it than her doing her job to help someone less fortunate in Belle Glade. You should be ashamed of yourself Jose. You really suck as a human being as well as a so-called Journalist. I would hate to see what your SPAWN look and act like.
since election 2000 i cannot bear to look at the face of george bush. i was elated when a democrat won the presidency. and now we have that face right back at us. poor jenna, she needs to change her face because it makes too many of us want to vomit. the bush family has managed to destroy both florida and the usa. many of us will be dead before change arrives.
Jose, once again you are printing your ignorance loud and clear. If you are not sniffing the asses of the rich of our area you are bashing the work of people, you don’t approve of. Can’t really understand how you continue to get print. If this story were about either of the Obama daughters, you would refer to them as “princesses”.
Jose, you are a left wing hack. If you didn’t work for this left wing paper, you would never be in print.
Jose, i never knew you were left wing. As a reader of your column, i guess i was under a rock. this was offensive and unnecessary -to label a President’s daughter as “spawn.” among the other derogatory implications made in the article. LOW!!! I am very upset. and i am an Obama supporter, fan…. all the way. but this is BAD. maybe you just did for a reaction?! i think Jenna is wonderful!! a woman to be commended and will be very successful. hopefully in her new career. That she cares so much about people less fortunate than herself (and she surely does she is also a TEACHER!!) says so much. MAybe she was raised RIGHT? lol….. i certainly think more of her than i do you.
Never a fan of the Bush family, but you can’t hold that against Jenna. She is doing more to publicize the plight of less fortunate people than anyone in her whole family ever did. Don’t hold her father against her.
and where do you think Matt Lauer would have stayed?
The station probably picked up the check.At least she is working respectfully.
If she’s a teacher why isn’t she in school teaching? She’s just like her mom,- can’t stand the job she trained for so is looking for a way out. Her mom switched to the library where it’s permissible to tell the kids to shut up. Jenna hopes to make better money working in news- she has a very weak face- they’ll carry her until she “sees” she’s not up to the job.
Staying at the Ritz is putting a lot of money back into the economy than staying at the Belle Glade Royal… money into the economy = Jobs.
Don’t they teach economics at hack school?
I too was annoyed at the coverage of Jenna Bush and her “new job” as a reporter. Former school teacher/ News Reporter…hhhmmm….ok. Anyway, I was all ready to slam her until I read the article and saw that she is a decent human being and not literally Bush’s “spawn”. She seems to have her own identity and agenda and was “shocked” to learn several of the tv stations were there for her. That spoke volumes to me on her character and realization that the world doesnt revolve around her “or” her father and today was intended for a very special little girl.Good luck to you Jenna and a VERY SPECIAL PRAYER for little Gisselle.
Good for her! Keep up the good work, Jenna. (It was very apparent by Jose’s verbage that he was attempting to demean her, i.e. “spawn”, etc. He has always been an egotistical idiot……..)
You can not punish someone because of who her father is. The decisions that her father made has nothing to do with her. And she is a FORMER teacher, it does not state that she is a teacher. How do we know if she was for or against the decisions that her father makes. And just because she stayed at the Ritz SO WHAT! The Ritz does not have just one room. How many other 100 people stayed there last night. I would expect her to stay there, come on people. When she associates Florida she probably thinks Palm Beach. Are we going to fault her for that. And I’m pretty sure that she did not do the travel arragements. At the end of the day she is human.
You were almost good Josie until your ridiculous poll. I’m serious man, are you sure you don’t work for Perez Hilton or TMZ or some other jokester website. The Palm Beach Post is unreadable.
So when was the last time that you stayed in a hotel in Belle Glade Jose? What was the name of the last hotel that you did stay at Jose?
I was a little taken back when i saw the title “ex-prez spawn.” what is wrong with you? Why would you be so rude? Why wouldn’t you report on this story with compassion for the child and give Jenna a little bit of credit for working at your new job.
You have no class!
Jose = typical left wing douche
No reason for the “spawn” comment. Jose Lambiet is a faggot anyways.
Gee, Lambiet, can you be anymore direct! We get it! You hate the Bush family. Next time, don’t spell it out for us or we may realize why you work for the Post. And by the way, we don’t have a Royal Inn in Belle Glade, its in Royal Palm Beach…you ass!
Sue E ROCKS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Yes, you are indeed an ass with uneven eyebrows!!!!!!!!!!!!
Thanks Sue E, was going to state the same…Royal Inn, owned by county commish, Jess Santamaria is in Royal Palm Beach.
Staying at the Ritz….that hotel bill, flight and cost of food is picked up by her employer…NBC.
Like Jose’s column, so though the “spawn” wording was tacky; he still gets a break.
Bless Gisselle and her family.
What a loser you are, these people hit the nail on your little bald head. Where are the 9 players in the NFL from Belle Glade who make MILLIONS of DOLLARS???? Fred Taylor, SuperBowl MVP of the Steelers,Santonio Holmes, James Jackson, Jimmie Spencer (to name a few)? Huh HOSE A where are they?? where do they live now, do they donate anything in Belle Glade?? Hell no, but you make some crappy article and poll people about being a republican and try to poke fun when there is a little girl dying (you are a sick piece of garbage!!!!), Jennas parents taught her respect and caring where is Clintons daughter or John Kerrys daughter???Maybe you will get cancer and we will take a poll? The questions could be:
1- Who is Jose Lambiet?
2- Should Jose get treatment under Obamas healthcare? NO!!
3- Will the post give a real reporter a job when he croaks?
4- Why did anyone SPAWN Jose anyway?
5- How many times did Jose get stuffed in the locker when he went to High School.
Jose doesnt “work” for Perez Hilton. He would just like to hook up with him for a quickie at the The Royal Inn of Belle Glade.
Jose, your catty “queen” side is showing
mr jose have you nothing else yo do why dont you write about your hero B hussein O who is selling us out to his muslim buddies may the first to get a towel to wrap around your empty head will be you numb nuts
Since you turned this into a political story rather than a “feel good” one about this poor little girl, I’m compelled to say that many of us wish we had anyone but OBAMA in the WH now that Iran has once again pulled the wool over our eyes. (Second nuke facility if you haven’t heard the news this am) Good grief, where is George W. when you need a strong leader!!!
[...] Jenna Bush is now a TV reporter? [...]
I think Jose sucks as much as the rest of you…a no class gossip girl who needs a bitch-slapping. Having said that, reporters rarely, if ever, write their own headlines. For this you need to blame a copy-editing/headline writing monkey!
Jose you are an Asshole go back to Cuba or south america where you came from! we don’t need nazis neo-communists in the land of the free!!!
What a lovely young lady that President and Mrs. Bush have raised. Congratulations on your new career path - you deserve it!! You looked great on the Today show!!
I guess Sue E. and Mad Mike don’t have google on their computers or just don’t care about facts. Type in “Royal Inn Belle Glade” and sure enough, just like Jose said, there it is. Did they know there is also an Atlantic Ave. in Delray Beach AND Pompano Beach? And, get this, I 95 goes all the way to New York! And what’s with Lincoln? You’re in the Land of the Free, so keep your mouth shut and don’t offer any opinions?