Jenna Bush Hager issues shock update about future of Today show - 24h - GMT
Jenna Bush Hager has issued an unexpected update about the future of Today with Jenna & Friends – as the team frantically searches for Hoda Kotb’s replacement.
Hager, 43, shared the news while attending the launch party for Kotb’s new wellness venture, Joy 101, this week.
‘We’re not as close as I wish we were,’ Hager admitted when asked by Entertainment Tonight if a new permanent co-host would be named soon.
‘But we’re still having a lot of fun, so that feels good,’ she added.
In September, Kotb, who had been a part of NBC News for 26 years, announced that she would be leaving the show in early 2025. Her last episode aired on January 10.
Since the star’s departure, Hager has been searching for a new co-host, testing out rotating guests such as actress Scarlett Johansson, comedian Heather McMahan and E! News host Justin Sylvester to name a few.
However, as she told Entertainment Tonight, it doesn’t seem like the network is close to settling on a decision.
The news comes amid rumors that Kotb might be taking over the Kelly Clarkson show – though it’s something she denied during a Wednesday appearance on the Today Show when asked by her former colleagues Craig Melvin and Savannah Guthrie.
Jenna Bush Hager has issued an unexpected update about the future of Today with Jenna & Friends – as the team frantically searches for Hoda Kotb’s replacement
Hager shared the news while attending the launch party for Kotb’s new wellness venture, Joy 101, this week
In September, Kotb, who had been a part of NBC News for 26 years, announced that she would be leaving the show in early 2025. Her last episode aired on January 10
‘Do you think if I ever came back to TV – do you know where the only place I would ever come back to is? Right here. This is the spot!’ she said.
‘So rumors are done?’ Craig asked.
‘Delete, delete,’ Kotb said. ‘Not true.’
‘I thought you were because I know you were playing your guitar and singing a lot lately and I thought that maybe you felt like, “I’m ready for some Hoda-oke!”‘ Savannah said, referencing Clarkson’s talk show game Kellyoke.
And while Kotb isn’t taking over the show, she will be appearing as a guest next week.
‘I am going to be on Kelly’s show next week though. Just for fun,’ Hoda clarified.
The confirmation comes amid speculation Kelly is considering quitting her talk show – and that Kotb is on a list of those eyed to replace her.
In an new interview, Kotb revealed the reason for her departure from the Today show, explaining that her daughter Hope’s type one diabetes diagnosis ‘definitely weighed in’ on her exit.
Since the star’s departure, Hager has been searching for a new co-host, testing out rotating guests such as actress Scarlett Johansson, comedian Heather McMahan and E! News host Justin Sylvester to name a few
‘We’re not as close as I wish we were,’ Hager admitted when asked by Entertainment Tonight how close she was to naming a permanent co-host for the show
‘As anyone with a child who has Type 1 (knows), especially a little kid, you’re constantly watching, you’re constantly monitoring, you’re constantly checking, which is what I did all the time when I was [at Today],’ she said.
‘You’re distracted. You just get a priority check in your life.
Read More Hoda Kotb breaks silence on daughter Hope’s debilitating health condition‘I can be here and sweating what’s happening to Hope in the morning and in the night, or I can be there and feel relief that I can see.’
At the time of her exit, Kotb shared that she felt like she was making the ‘right decision’ to step away.
‘As I write this, my heart is all over the map’ Kotb said at the time. ‘I know I’m making the right decision, but it’s a painful one. And you all are the reason why. They say two things can be right at the same time, and I’m feeling that so deeply right now. I love you and it’s time for me to leave the show.
‘My time at NBC has been the longest professional love affair of my life. But only because you’ve been beside me on this twenty-six-year adventure. Looking back, the math is nuts. 26 years at NBC News – Ten years at Dateline, seven on the seven o’clock hour, sixteen on the ten o’clock hour.’
She continued: ‘I’m picturing your faces and your families and all the ways you’ve lifted me up and inspired me. That’s my heart singing. So many of my professional relationships have become some of my most cherished friendships.’
She went on to pay a heart breaking tribute to her ‘ride-or-die’ Jenna Bush Hager and claimed she will ‘desperately’ miss everyone she has worked with on the popular morning show.
The Department of Justice has indicted 14 individuals for their alleged involvement in a large-scale migrant smuggling network.
THE SLEDGEHAMMER MANDATE: DOJ Indicts 14 Key Members of Expansive Transnational Smuggling Syndicate as Trump Order Restores Border Dominance
I. The Mid-Atlantic Takedown
In a development that has fundamentally shattered the operational equilibrium of human trafficking networks today, May 23, 2026, the United States Department of Justice (DOJ) has unsealed a historic multi-agency indictment. A federal grand jury has returned comprehensive criminal charges against 14 primary operatives of an "extensive" and highly structured migrant smuggling ring operating across several major transit corridors. The jaw-dropping enforcement action, executed just minutes ago by synchronized Homeland Security Task Force details, marks a massive structural victory for President Donald Trump's zero-tolerance security metrics, throwing illegal network planners into a state of "total mayhem."
II. Anatomy of the 14-Member Syndicate
The core mechanism of the federal investigation exposed a highly coordinated corporate-style conspiracy designed to systematically bypass regional border security filters. According to unsealed court documents presented by federal prosecutors, the 14 indicted individuals managed a sprawling logistics enterprise that integrated illicit staging areas, commercial transport streams, and fraudulent identification factories.
The extensive ring utilized specialized financial conduits to launder multi-million dollar cash flows, often using legitimate shell companies to mask their operational footprints from standard regulatory checkmarks. Under the directive of Attorney General Todd Blanche, investigators utilized advanced forensic telephone audits, localized data enrichment pipelines, and real-time satellite coordination networks to identify and neutralize the syndicate's top decision-makers simultaneously. The charges include conspiracy to commit alien smuggling for profit, structuring financial transactions, and systemic document fraud—carrying mandatory minimum sentences that range up to life imprisonment.
III. Total Panic in Sanctuary and Progressive Circles
The fallout from this sudden, multi-state sweep has left progressive defense caucuses and sanctuary city advocacy groups in a state of absolute shock. For months, opposition planners operated under the historical assumption that complex, decentralized transit groups could slow-walk federal detection protocols by shifting their logistical assets into non-compliant state jurisdictions. The swift execution of these 14 sealed warrants completely upends that narrative.
The political tension reached an absolute boiling point today following statements from White House Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller, who verified that the administration will utilize every available executive filter—including the immediate withholding of federal law enforcement grants—to penalize any local municipality attempting to shield human trafficking rings from active prosecution. Left-wing commentators appeared visibly shaken on live television, recognizing that the administration\'s populist border momentum has effectively neutralized their standard institutional blockades.
IV. A Critical Turning Point for the 2026 Map
Political strategists and legislative analysts are calling this massive DOJ takedown the defining benchmark of the ongoing 2026 midterm elections landscape. By demonstrating a direct, uncompromised capability to dismantle transnational syndicates at their roots, the "America First" movement has completely consolidated its momentum surrounding national sovereignty and citizen security. The timing of the busts provides a clear campaign purity test for congressional candidates, forcing rank-and-file lawmakers to go on the record regarding the strict enforcement of federal immigration laws and the expansion of Homeland Security Council resources ahead of the fall campaigns.
V. Mission Accomplished: Sovereignty and Rule of Law Prevail
As federal marshals finalize the processing and booking of the remaining fugitives today, the message from Washington remains unmistakable: The rule of verifiable constitutional law has officially prevailed over decades of unchecked border exploitation. By standing firm alongside multi-agency enforcement teams to execute this landmark 14-member indictment, President Trump has secured an ultimate structural victory for the country's public safety network. The smuggling routes are shattered, the progressive obstruction blockades are cracked, and the light of justice is finally shining on the borders of the republic. Mission accomplished—the 2026 administrative restoration is officially in high gear.
