Billy Bush verbally accused former “Today” co-host Al Roker on the June 12 episode of “The Nerve With Maureen Callahan.”
“The three words I would use to describe Al are territorial, vindictive and chronically unprepared,” President Bush said of the 71-year-old weather forecaster.
The journalist claimed that the third hour of NBC’s morning news show “will never be a successful hour” because Roker is “probably the worst interviewer on television.”
Mr. Bush worked on the script for “Today” for two months in 2016 before he was fired after an “Access Hollywood” interview in which Donald Trump boasted to Mr. Bush about grabbing women “in the butt” was leaked.
The 54-year-old said he was “prepared” and “well-researched” for the job, but Roker was “jealous” of him.
Bush also pointed out that Roker and Matt Lauer, who was fired from the show in 2017 after allegations of inappropriate sexual conduct, both “didn’t want him” during the third hour.
Mr. Bush also claimed that Mr. Roker “liked” a tweet in which he called him a “racist who abuses white people,” but that Mr. Roker was not punished by producers because of his long time with the show.
“Al has been there the whole time, so you know, he’s free to run that place with a lot of qualifications, and one of them is longevity,” Bush added.
Bush went on to say of Roker, “People don’t know how mean he was. He’s mean. He’s mean. When you say rage, it’s mean. There’s anger. There’s jealousy. And I’m talking about revenge, but he’s mean.”
Roker also didn’t like a former colleague who didn’t want to “share the air” and who attracted attention from women, according to Busch.
“When I got there, they said this was a young guy with big hair that the women on the staff really liked, and that infuriated him,” Bush said.
At the end of the interview, Bush slammed Roker’s weather forecast.
“You’ll never hear anything really insightful,” he said. “That’s not what he’s there for.”
Page Six has reached out to Roker and Today reps for comment.
Bush previously said he coped with his firing from “Today” by drinking heavily, lying on the couch and crying.
He was given a second chance at a television career in 2019 when Extra hired him to replace Mario Lopez.
Bush has since left “Extra” in favor of his podcast, “Hot Mikes with Billy Bush,” which he launched in 2025.
