A majority of Americans say the types of extreme interrogations detailed in a recent Senate report on CIA methods were “acceptable under the circumstances,” a new poll found.
According to a Wall Street Journal/NBC News poll, 51 percent of those surveyed said they did not object to the practice, while just 28 percent said the interrogations were wrong, and 20 percent had no opinion.
And 45 percent of respondents said such intelligence methods should continue to be used against terror suspects. Just 28 percent said those actions were wrong and should not be used.
Obama banned the use of such practices soon after taking office.
The poll did not use the word “torture” to describe waterboarding and rectal feedings, among other techniques, that critics say violated international law.
The so-called “torture report” released by the Senate Intelligence Committee last week reignited a debate in Washington about the balance between civil rights and national security in the wake of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.
Republicans say the release of the report could endanger Americans overseas, while defenders of publicizing the document say it enhances the U.S. moral standing on the global stage.
