“In June [22] 2004, just after the Abu Ghraib [prison in Iraq] photos first emerged, [President] Bush insisted that he would never order torture. ‘Let me make very clear the position of my government and our country,’ he told reporters. ‘We do not condone torture. I have never ordered torture. I will never order torture. The values of this country are such that torture is not a part of our soul and our being.’ He added that ‘the United States will continue to take seriously the need to question terrorists who have information that can save lives. But we will not compromise the rule of law or the values and principles that make us strong. Torture is wrong no matter where it occurs, and the United States will continue to lead the fight to eliminate it everywhere.’ ”
– James Risen, State of War, Page 24