Roehrkasse is from Urbandale, Iowa. He was on the campaign staff for George W. Bush in 2000. From 2001 to 2002, Roehrkasse served in the Office of Public Affairs at the Department of Transportation. In 2002, he moved to the then newly created Department of Homeland Security where he served as press secretary. While at the Department of Homeland Security he was responsible for communicating sensitive intelligence and threat information to the press during several heightened periods of threat.
