Rollan Roberts II announces his bid for presidency

CHARLESTON W.Va. (WVVA) - Rollan Roberts II is no stranger to politics. His father, Rollan Roberts Senior is currently serving as a West Virginia State Senator representing of Raleigh, Wyoming and parts of Fayette County.

The younger Roberts announced his bid for the White House in front of friends and family in the rotunda of West Virginia’s capitol building. Roberts is running as a republican and says part of his campaign is focused on reducing the national deficit.

“America is broke. We have 31 trillion in debt with 1.2 trillion in interest a year. We have 4.8 trillion in bills every year and 4.9 coming in. We’re losing by 1.2 trillion a year. We have to fix America,” said Roberts II.

Roberts says he’s traveled around the world and sees dramatic differences in infrastructure in other countries like Dubai and South Korea, compared to what he sees here in the U.S.

“It’s not just better and aesthetically beautiful, it is fundamentally more efficient. We haven’t changed our transportation industry in 150 years. It was 1869 when the first rail road ties were laid. We need to move past what has been so that we can experience America’s best days ahead,” said Roberts II.

Roberts says he wants to become president to represent the people. His father, State Senator Rollan Roberts, says he was surprised by his son’s announcement, but it didn’t take long to embrace it..

“The more I got to thinking about the national political scene, I thought you know what we do need to have some candidates that have the right skill set to help Americans and not just get into these special interests debates and divisive behaviors,” said Roberts.

Another topic Roberts II wants to address is the education system. He says it needs a major overhaul when it comes to the time children start and end their schools days. He adds he would also like to see bachelor’s degrees run parallel with high school education, allowing for better opportunities.

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