John Ashcroft claims waterboarding isn't torture

John Ashcroft is claiming that waterboarding isn't torture and says that it served a "very valuable" purpose without offering specifics.

The former Attorney General Ashcroft, testifying before the House Judiciary Committee on administration interrogation rules, answered a question from Rep. Howard Coble, R-North Carolina.

Coble said, "waterboarding, as we all know, is a controversial issue. Do you think it served a beneficial purpose?"

"The reports that I have heard, and I have no reason to disbelieve them, indicate that they were very valuable," Ashcroft said.