Donald Trump's campaign trail promise to bring back waterboarding is at a standstill.

Since taking office, Trump has stepped back from the issue of interrogation methods, deferring to top advisers for guidance on how to handle enemy combatants in U.S. custody.

In his most recent comments on the matter, Trump said he would rely on his secretary of defense, former Marine Gen. James Mattis, about whether to reinstate the practice of waterboarding, which is illegal under current U.S. law.

"Mattis (has) stated publicly that he does not necessarily believe in torture or waterboarding," Trump said in a Jan. 27 press conference. "I don't necessarily agree, but I would tell you that he will override because I'm giving him that power."

During his confirmation process, Mattis told lawmakers that as Pentagon chief, all U.S. military interrogations would comply with the Army Field Manual, which is codified in U.S. law, and prohibits waterboarding and other so-called "enhanced interrogation techniques."

Earlier, Mattis told Trump "a pack of cigarettes and a couple of beers" worked better than torture.

If Trump relied solely on Mattis's input, waterboarding would remain verboten.

However, Trump has previously said he would defer to other members of his circle on the question of waterboarding, and specifically named CIA Director Mike Pompeo.

"I will rely on Pompeo and Mattis and my group," Trump said in a Jan. 25 interview with ABC News. "And if they don't want to do, that's fine. If they do want to do, then I will work for that end."

It's unclear if Trump intends to give equal weight to Mattis and Pompeo. But it's worth noting Mattis' vow to lawmakers referred only to interrogations carried out by the U.S. military, not intelligence operatives.

Pompeo's views on waterboarding are more ambiguous than Mattis'.

During Pompeo's confirmation hearing, he too reassured senators the CIA would comply with the Army Field Manual and would not conduct enhanced interrogation techniques, even at Trump's request.

But in subsequent written responses to senators' questions, Pompeo's position seemed more equivocal, and appeared to leave open the possibility of reviewing the agency's interrogation methods.

Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., asked whether Pompeo would consider bringing waterboarding back to the CIA. Pompeo replied that he would consult with intelligence and other officials on whether the Army Field Manual's constraints posed "an impediment to gathering vital intelligence to protect the country."

"If experts believed current law was an impediment to gathering vital intelligence to protect the country," he wrote, "I would want to understand such impediments and whether any recommendations were appropriate for changing current law."

That provoked a stern rebuke from Human Rights Watch and others that have been outspoken in criticizing the application of harsh interrogation methods.

Pompeo's responses to questions about torture "are dangerously ambiguous about whether he would endorse abusive practices and seek to subvert existing legal protections," said Maria McFarland Sanchez-Moreno, who co-directs Human Rights Watch's U.S. program.

The CIA would not say whether Pompeo has reviewed the current law governing interrogation, or consulted with intelligence or other officials on the matter.

There's no sign Trump has taken direct action to bring back waterboarding. Rather, his most recent position is that he intends to rely on guidance from his defense secretary.

In earlier statements, however, Trump also said he would defer to his CIA director, who appears to be holding the door ajar for revisiting the law governing U.S. interrogation methods.

For these reasons, we rate Trump's promise as Stalled.