CIA contractors were allegedly paid $1,800 for waterboarding

CIA contractors were allegedly paid $1,800 for waterboarding
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One overlooked tidbit from yesterday's Senate report on CIA torture is the fact that CIA interrogators were paid more for using waterboarding techniques.

Contractors who used waterboarding and other torture methods on prisoners were paid $1,800 per day, tax-free — four times as much as those who didn't use waterboarding were paid.

The Daily Dot reports that contract torturers were paid more than $80 million between 2001 and 2009. That puts individuals at $500,000 to $700,000 a year in tax-free retainers.

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Meghan DeMaria

Meghan DeMaria is a staff writer at TheWeek.com. She has previously worked for USA Today and Marie Claire.