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I'm assuming the Treasury is funded by taxpayers which means the free shipping is paid for by taxpayers. Cool hack but kind of lame.

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Not to mention the credit card fees, which is what actually funds the miles.

The irony is that if you pay your taxes with a credit card, you have to pay the credit card fees in addition to the balance on your taxes.

Actually the U.S. Mint is one of the few government bodies that is widely profitable.

http://www.usmint.gov/pressroom/?flash=yes&action=press_...

Granted it's from 2001, but I visited the mint in Denver earlier this year and they still claim the same thing.

I'd hope they're profitable, given that they're literally printing money.

Hate to be nitpicky, but the U.S. Mint does not print anything. They mint coins. They fund operations with licensing the Minting machines to other nations and collectible coins. They also at one point minted other nations'coins.

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