US Torture Policies: Sen. King on torture report: 'This is not America' - by Jeremy Diamond

The Senate Intelligence Committee's report on the CIA's "enhanced interrogation" techniques to be released Tuesday concludes that the CIA tortured detainees and that torture did not yield actionable intelligence, Sen. Angus King said Tuesday.

"Did we torture people? Yes. Did it work? No," King, a Maine independent who caucuses with Democrats, said on CNN's "New Day".

King, who is a member of the committee, called the extensive report "chilling" and said it will show the world that the U.S. is repudiating those practices used in the post-9/11 era under President George W. Bush's tenure.

"This is not America. This is not who we are," King said. "What was done diminished our stature and enflamed [Islamist extremists], terrorists around the world."

The report is being released over cries from other lawmakers and intelligence officials who say the report could endanger American personnel abroad.

King acknowledged those risks and said the decision to release the report was "not an easy" one. But King said releasing the report is key to ensuring the U.S. government is never again involved in torture.

"It's important to take this step to say who we are and that we're not going to be doing this again," King said.

President Barack Obama signed an executive order when he came into office in 2009 officially barring U.S. officials from using torture practices, such as waterboarding, that were called "enhanced interrogation" techniques under the Bush administration.

Read  more: Sen. King on torture report: 'This is not America' - CNN.com