The proposal was met with a lot of resistance from the Red River people as they were given the chance to address their grievances about the potential loss of land and becoming part of an American expansion and colonization through a proclamation by the Governor-General of the dominion. Americans who supported annexation by the US tried to depict themselves as favorable figures in the eyes of the Métis by associating themselves with Louis Riel. The Resistance was an unarmed conflict started by the Métis because Canada was attempting to claim possession of Rupert's Land without any concern for the grievances of the Métis. However, the main American intention behind their decision to support Riel and the Resistance was an attempt to sway the Métis in favour of the annexation by the US. One of their tools was the New Nation newspaper which elicited rhetoric that advocated annexation by the US because it embodied the popular Manifest Destiny ideology. This was meant to help the cause of annexation, the idea being that their support of the Red River Resistance would encourage local resistance against Britain and Canada, and help swing local opinion in favour of independence – then ultimately America would step in to offer the protection of the United States government to the Red River Métis and assert themselves as the new leaders and Red River would become American land. They ultimately wanted to create a situation where the Red River could become American territory by allying with the discontented Métis Nation.