I would say the most significant weaknesses of the government under the Articles of Confederation was the fact that the central government was too weak to enforce laws and couldn't impose taxes. The states had the most authority and since the government wasn't able to impose taxes, it doesn't have enough funds for a military (and it had to ask the states for troops). Without a strong military, it will be hard to defend the nation well if anything should occur.
In part, the Cold War was a battle of ideas, which was contested in the media, on the floor of the United Nations, through all manner of propaganda, and in millions of interactions among Americans and their allies, the Soviet Union, “Red” China, and their allies, and the rest of the world. But the Cold War was not just about talk. It was also about action, and on a number of occasions the actions of the players on both sides of the Cold War divide resulted in confrontations and crises that brought the ideological adversaries to the brink of war.
The leader of the Department of State is the Secretary of State and the first Secretary of State was future President Thomas Jefferson who held the role from 1790-1793.
Jefferson's time as Secretary of State was marked by an intense rivalry with Secretary of the Treasury Alexander Hamilton and a growing divide between the parties in the capital.
February 12, 1809
Hope that helps