There were several factors that influenced the ideas about government in the new United States. One major factor was the experience of the colonists under British rule, which had led many of them to advocate for a more limited and decentralized form of government. Another important factor was the Enlightenment ideas of philosophers like John Locke, who argued that government should be based on the consent of the governed and should be limited in its powers in order to protect individual liberties.
There was a need to separate government powers and limit any one person's power in order to prevent the abuse of power and protect individual rights. The founders of the United States believed that a system of checks and balances, in which different branches of government had different powers and were able to check and balance each other's actions, would help to prevent any one group or individual from becoming too powerful.
The Articles of Confederation, which were the first governing document of the United States, granted Congress the power to declare war, make peace, enter into treaties and alliances, and regulate foreign commerce. Congress also had the power to levy taxes and regulate the money supply, but it did not have the power to directly tax individuals or raise an army.
In my opinion, the most important item in the Articles of Confederation was the provision that established a system of federalism, in which power was divided between the federal government and the state governments. This system allowed the states to retain a significant degree of autonomy while still being part of a larger federal union, which helped to preserve the rights and sovereignty of the individual states