White House denies Cheney comment linked to endorsement of “water boarding.”

Stemming from comments made earlier in the week, the White House has denied any connection between what Vice President Dick Cheney said and the use of torture. Human rights groups have claimed Cheney’s apparent support of dunking suspected terrorist detainees was an endorsement of “water boarding”, a torture technique that involves dunking suspects in water during an interrogation.

When asked about Cheney’s comments relating to his interview on Tuesday, President Bush said “This country doesn't torture. We're not going to torture.”

Cheney said that dunking a terrorism suspect would be a “no-brainer” if it could save lives. The White House has been adamant that the V.P.’s comments were not in relation to a technique that leads the suspect to believe they are going to be drowned. 

Many human rights groups interpreted Cheney’s comments to be an endorsement for torture. While Cheney did say “We don't torture. That's not what we're involved in,” human rights groups aren’t buying the statement.

Responding to the Cheney interview the executive director of Amnesty International USA, Larry Cox, said “What's really a no-brainer is that no U.S. official, much less a vice president, should champion torture. Vice President Cheney's advocacy of water boarding sets a new human rights low at a time when human rights is already scraping the bottom of the Bush administration barrel.”