Jenna Bush weds, down-home style

CRAWFORD, TEXAS —  Jenna Bush couldn’t see herself getting married at the White House surrounded by antique furniture and oil portraits of presidents. She and Henry Hager said “I do” Saturday at President Bush’s ranch near Crawford where the corn is thigh-high, roads are named Cattle Drive and the Texas flag is painted on the rooftops of barns.

The president and the bride picked “You Are So Beautiful” for their father-daughter dance, according to band leader Tyrone Smith of Nashville, Tenn. Smith and his 10-piece party band, the Tyrone Smith Revue, were asked to do “Lovin’ in My Baby’s Eyes” by Taj Mahal for the newlyweds’ first dance.

Smith, who witnessed the ceremony, said afterward that the groom was dressed in a dark blue suit with powder-blue tie and the bride wore a “very simple and elegant” white dress and no veil.

Smith said Jenna Bush’s paternal grandparents, President George H.W. Bush and Barbara Bush, spoke during the wedding, though he could not hear their comments.

Away from the glare of television cameras, Jenna’s outdoor wedding to Henry Hager reflected their penchant for privacy and her preference for the casual over grandiose.

“This is a joyous occasion for our family,” Bush said in his Saturday radio address.

He added: “It’s also a special time for Laura who this Mother’s Day weekend will watch a young woman we raised together walk down the aisle.”

Jenna’s twin sister, Barbara, was maid of honor and 14 other women were in her “house party.” The best man was the groom’s brother.

More than 200 family and friends converged for the nuptials on the ranch.