On December 29, 1835, the Treaty Party signed the Treaty of New Echota. This treaty gave the United States government all rights to land that the Cherokee Nation occupied south of the Appalachians. Members of the Treaty Party signed this treaty without the consent of the National Council and without the support of most of the Cherokee Nation. Researched is the motivation behind the twenty-five men from the Treaty Party that signed the treaty, and heavily focuses on three main figures: Elias Boudinot, Major Ridge, and John Ridge. Historians like Theda Perdue and Ronald Satz have disagreed on the true intentions and motivations of the Treaty Party. The argument from Satz is that the members of the party were thinking about saving and protecting the rest of the Cherokee Nation; the argument from Perdue is that the members of the party were motivated by a political and financial gain that they would receive in the west after removal. Looking at the tribal newspaper, the Cherokee Phoenix, and letters from the members of the party, it seems that these men were motivated by greed and a desire for political power and wealth. This greed is what led to the removal and ultimately the Trail of Tears.