What is waterboarding?

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Why: Armitage Says Waterboarding is Torture

Answer: It involves strapping a person to an inclined board, with his feet raised and his head lowered. The interrogators bind the person's arms and legs so he can't move at all, and they cover his face. In some descriptions, the person is gagged, and some sort of cloth covers his nose and mouth; in others, his face is wrapped in cellophane. The interrogator then repeatedly pours water onto the person's face. Depending on the exact setup, the water may or may not actually get into the person's mouth and nose. The physical experience of being underneath a wave of water seems to be secondary to the psychological experience. The person's mind believes he is drowning, and his gag reflex kicks in as if he were choking on all that water falling on his face.

Source: How Stuff Works

The More You Know: The CIA has acknowledged using waterboarding on three high-level terrorism detainees in 2002 and 2003, with the permission of the White House and the Justice Department.