What is Resistbot?
Resistbot is a volunteer group that, as mentioned, sends your letters to elected officials. Once the user engages in such a support campaign, Resistbot asks for its name and address. It then attaches that person’s name to the letter and sends out three copies: two to their U.S. Senators and one to their local U.S. Representative.
On Aug. 15, 2020, Democratic Congressional candidate Allen Ellison tweeted that “If you text USPS to 50409 they will send letters to your senators and representative in support of the postal service. It literally takes under a minute.” A similar exhortation posted on Facebook read: “Pushback pressure is working. Text USPS to 50409. This one-word text will automatically send a letter to your local representatives using Resistbot and urge them to take action. Thanks.”
How the "Text rbg to 50409" Works
The user texts “USPS” to 50409. The bot automatically and immediately replies, asking if the user wants to electronically sign a “Support the USPS” letter and send it to the user’s political representatives. It also offers to show a sample of what the letter will look like:
When the user replies with “SAMPLE,” the bot replies with a link to a screenshot of the form letter and asks if the user would like to sign it:
After the user confirms, the bot then asks for a first and last name and a mailing address:
The bot adds the user’s name to the petition and the mailing address allows it to identify the user’s congressional district. The bot then automatically sends the letter via email to the corresponding members of the U.S. House of Representatives and Senate.