Skip navigation

Lawmaker gets to the bottom of panties torture

Debate waged over making suspected terrorists wear briefs on their heads

Video: Capitol Hill  
  
Rep. Kirk touts GOP's health care ideas
Nov. 14: Delivering the Republicans' weekly radio and Internet address, Rep. Mark Kirk, R-Ill., promotes several provisions in the House GOP health care bill, which was rejected a week ago when the House passed the Democratic plan.

Follow @msnbc_politics for more news from D.C.

INTERACTIVE
Get political at Newsvine
Read, rate and discuss the latest news.
Slideshow
  The Week in Political Cartoons
Msnbc.com’s political cartoonists take a look back at the past week.

more photos

updated 3:42 a.m. ET June 5, 2008

WASHINGTON - At least one member of Congress has his knickers in a twist over the subject of ... panties.

In a debate about the way detainees are treated at Guantanamo Bay, California Republican Dana Rohrabacher argued that it's not torture to make suspected terrorists wear women's underwear on their heads.

Rohrabacher was taking issue with FBI complaints about inappropriate and potentially illegal tactics used to get al-Qaida detainees to talk. He said interrogation-by-panties was more akin to "hazing," not torture.

Story continues below ↓
advertisement | your ad here

He mentioned the word "panties" eight times during a House Foreign Affairs Committee hearing.

Massachusetts Democrat Bill Delahunt pointedly told Rohrabacher that the issue went beyond panties, saying interrogators were also seen physically abusing detainees.

Rohrabacher declared he would never apologize for someone putting panties on the head of a 9-11 terrorist.

Copyright 2008 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Sponsored links

Resource guide