When Jackson thought about what decision was considered right or wrong, he thought about the effects and what would happen. One of the reasons he decided it was better for a larger group of people was because the Indian Removal Act provided protection from angry white citizens. Jackson applied the Indian Removal Act as a means of a paternalistic vision. Jackson viewed the Indians as little children who needed direction and management. Unfortunately, some Americans perceived this as an excuse for their indescribable disrespect towards Native people. “Throughout 1836 and into 1837, whites robbed and beat Cherokees almost daily.” (Dwyer year, 36). Because of most Americans' view of the impossibility of manifesting the entire continent, when a possibility arose, their mindset would not be changed. Therefore, the removal of the Indians would preserve them from the destruction of the whites. Jackson and his supporters wanted Western lands and settlements, so they would do anything to get them. Another thing Jackson realized when he was given all the options about the Indians was his reputation and his thoughts. Andrew Jackson's ideas about Indians stem from his life on the frontier, his expansionist views, his commitment to states' rights, and his intense nationalism. Jackson wanted to please the citizens, especially after gaining their support and winning the election with a landslide of the popular vote. Even though this act drove the Natives from their homes and hundreds of years of tradition and generations, Jackson maintained his loyalty to the American people. Nearly 60,000 Native Americans were involuntarily migrated and while this is a huge number to represent people, it was not close to the United States city population of nearly 13,000,000. Another reason Jackson may have carried out the act was that the Indians would not fit into white society