Why did Japan try to control US influence by attacking Pearl Harbor?

Japan did
this because it wanted to have a large empire in East Asia.  Japan felt that it deserved to be
the major power in its region of the world.  It did not want the US to try to stand in its way. 
Therefore, it attacked the US at Pearl Harbor.

Japan felt that it was
powerful enough to be a major imperial country just like the US, England, and France were.  It
felt that it should have a large sphere of...