House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said today she stood by the statement she made last week accusing the CIA of lying to lawmakers about waterboarding.
"I stand my my comment," she said.
The House's top Democrat said she stood by her claim last week that the CIA misled her and other lawmakers about its use of waterboarding -- but refused to answer questions on the topic when pressed further today.
Pelosi set off a firestorm when she denied claims that she knew about the harsh interrogation technique at Guantanamo Bay as early as 2002. She made the accusation against the CIA after being asked if the agency lied to her.
"They mislead us all the time," Pelosi said last week. "We were told that waterboarding was not being used. That's the only mention, that they were not using it. And we now know that earlier they were."
The CIA refused to address Pelosi's claims directly but said the agency does not provide misinformation as a practice.
"It is not our policy or practice to mislead Congress," CIA Director Leon Panetta, a fellow Democrat, said last week.
