Waterboarding Officially Declared as Torture by Holder

A federal official draws a new line in the sand.

Rumsfeld and Bush Salem-News.com

(SALEM, Ore.) - The next U.S. Attorney General-nominee, Eric Holder Jr., stated clearly today that Waterboarding is torture. This unusual practice used on Guantanamo Bay detainees and other prisoners of the U.S. government during the Bush Administration, was highly criticized when it first came to light.

But Bush's team, with former Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld leading the way, declared that this method of prisoner treatment was legal.

Holder's statement is a clear indication that President-elect Barack Obama will represent a radical departure from the last eight years. What Holder has achieved is something that the two previous attorney generals have deftly avoided.

Holder pulled no punches in stating that the CIA's harsh interrogation tactic is indeed, torture. This is a claim that was made years ago by groups like Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch where the United States in recent years, has risen on the list of offenders.

Waterboarding is a torture technique that simulates drowning in a controlled environment. Wikipedia says waterboarding consists of immobilizing an individual on his or her back, with the head inclined downward, and pouring water over the face to force the inhalation of water into the lungs.

Waterboarding has been used to obtain information, coerce confessions, punish, and intimidate. It relies on the gag reflex and people who have been subjected to it say it assaults all of a person's senses, causing them to fear for their lives. (see my article: Waterboarding: Policy of a Cruel and Unusual President