Comment by drowsspa

Not really, based on the little I know from legislation. When it comes to public administration, the principle of "you can do whatever the law doesn't forbid you to do" is reversed: it can only do whatever the law says it can, and there are some general principles, written in the law as well, governing the flexibility in the interpretation as well. And specially they're not at will employees, there are very complicated processes to justify firing them.

For instance, there is no law allowing the president to do a SELECT * in the income tax database. So an honest government worker can just say f-off when he is requested to do so.