Sure it is. You eliminate every dept executively that you can and legislatively where needed. Wholesale.
Then you rebuild new ones only where, staffed by, those needed. The problem is analysis paralysis.
Reforming just one agency is a monumental task. There are legislative constraints and hard political realities. Do you have any idea what the financial implications would be of terminating the legions of contractors working for the government? And then there are office leasing obligations. Most agencies have offices all over the country. You just don’t pull the plug; contracts are binding two way agreements.
Even rebuilding is problematic. Where are all the new people coming from? I’ve worked for government and private industry and much prefer the latter. So do millions of other people. Working for the government is just not an attractive option for highly qualified people with talent and skill sets that are in demand.
You can’t be simplistic and naïve about the scope of issues involved with downsizing. We need to cut, and drastically so, but trust me — its far easier said than done in reality.