KFSN ABC-30 out of Fresno tries a little real reporting on the issue of banks giving mortgages to illegal aliens. It's not an in-depth report, but it's more than other sources have done.

They report on the experiences of an illegal alien known only as "David". It includes this:

But getting a loan from the bank almost didn't happen. An employee from the bank called and said it seemed they had a problem.

The problem was David's social security number ... it's a fake.

I thought that was a crime? And, why would a bank give a home loan to someone who lied on their application by providing a fake SSN?

Who's involved?

The Valley non-profit group Acorn is helping people like David. They set him up with Citibank in Fresno, where a social security number is not required.

Who's on the American side?

But [Diana Hull from Californians For Population Stabilization] says the [potential $60 billion market from this practice] is not just a bad idea ... she insists it's also against the law. "There is a law against aiding and abetting illegal aliens to continue to live in the United States. Issuing a mortgage to an illegal alien is helping him establish himself and remain the United States, which is clearly illegal. It's a felony," she says.

Hall says the problem goes all the way to the top, and she pins much of the blame on the largest of government institutions, like the FDIC, the IRS and the Social Security Administration.

Is "David" confused about his status? Let's find out:

"I work hard like any other citizen and I try to live just like a normal citizen. And I have everything, I think I still have my rights."

The problem, of course, is that "David" is not a citizen. He does have certain rights, but not the same rights as a citizen or a legal immigrant. Pretending otherwise simply devalues American citizenship, something that our leaders are probably also in favor of.

Then, comes a little bit of real reporting:

Despite the accusations that what they're doing is illegal, Citigroup and Acorn stand by the program.

Acorn issued a statement saying everything about their program is legal. They say in the United States, it is perfectly legal for non-citizens to own property.

When asked about its opinion on whether the program is indeed legal, or unlawfully entices illegal immigrants to stay, the U.S. Attorney's office refused an answer.

That last bit is certainly interesting, and simply reinforces what Hull says above.