The US' first family has its fair share of parenting headaches, with President George W. Bush's twin daughters acting out their resentment at his chosen career with drinking binges and other escapades, excerpts from a new book published Wednesday said.
Mr Bush's twins, Jenna and Barbara, now 22 and in their final year of college, are described as over-indulged and with no interest in the presidency in The Perfect Wife: The Life and Choices of Laura Bush by Ann Gerhart, a Washington Post journalist.
"They are girls born rich, blessed with intelligence, good looks, trust funds, loving parents, boundless opportunities, freedom from many of life's daily vexing challenges," the book says.
"Yet they persist in seeing themselves as victims of daddy's job."
The book says the Bushes fell into the trap of spoiling their children because Laura Bush nearly lost them late in her pregnancy. It suggests that George W. Bush was less indulgent than their mother.
Excerpts in yesterday's Washington Post departed from the media convention of granting privacy to the children of presidents, including former US President Bill Clinton's daughter Chelsea.
Unlike Chelsea Clinton, who the book notes used her time in the White House to learn about world politics, the Bush daughters are portrayed as having few interests beyond drinking, parties and designer clothing.
They also mistreated their bodyguards, unlike Hillary Clinton. Within a month of George W. Bush's inauguration in January 2001, Jenna Bush tried to use her Secret Service guard to free a male friend jailed in Texas for public drunkenness. Later that year she was prosecuted twice for underage drinking, fined and ordered to perform community service.
Even the mood of gravity that descended on the US after September 11, 2001 did not affect the twins.
The book says Jenna could not be found for hours after the attacks after giving her agent the slip.
It was unclear what the White House makes of their behavior. The book says it has been reluctant to comment on their scrapes but George W. Bush has expressed some impatience. Laura Bush has been unfailingly supportive.
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