WASHINGTON (AP) -- President Bush will sign an executive order to open an investigation into U.S.

WASHINGTON (AP) -- President Bush will sign an executive order to open an investigation into U.S. intelligence failures in Iraq, his way of quieting mounting election-year criticism from Republican and Democrats alike.
The investigation will examine Iraq and other intelligence issues dealing with stateless groups, such as Al-Qaida, and secretive regimes, such as North Korea, a senior White House official said Sunday on condition of anonymity.
Given the broad mandate, the investigation's findings are not likely to be known until after the November presidential election.
No WMDs found
Bush's decision comes amid assertions that America's credibility is being undermined by uncertainty over flawed intelligence used as a basis for invading Iraq. Despite months of searching, U.S. inspectors have found no banned weapons in Iraq. Former Iraq weapons inspector David Kay has said the administration's intelligence on Iraqi weapons was "almost all wrong."
Bush initially reacted coolly to setting up an independent investigation, then decided during the weekend to go forward.
By setting up the investigation himself, Bush will have greater control over its membership and mandate.
The senior White House official said it would be patterned after the Warren Commission, which conducted a 10-month investigation that concluded in 1964 that Lee Harvey Oswald acted alone in killing President Kennedy.
In appointing the members, Bush will draw heavily from experts familiar with problems in intelligence, the White House official said, describing them as "distinguished citizens who have served their country in the past."
Past measure defeated
Sen. Jon Corzine, D-N.J., whose measure to set up a similar bipartisan commission to investigate prewar intelligence was defeated in the Senate last July, said any investigative panel must be able to probe the collection and analysis of intelligence as well as the use of the information, "including whether there was any misrepresentation or exaggeration of the intelligence."
"We must not lose sight of the big picture," Corzine said in a statement Sunday. "Americans are fighting and dying in Iraq because of what the administration told us about the intelligence."
Lawmakers from both parties say the intelligence flap has diluted America's credibility.
"The issue is not just shortcomings of U.S. intelligence," Sen. Chuck Hagel, R-Neb., a senior member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, said Sunday on CNN's "Late Edition," but also "the credibility of who we are around the world and the trust of our government and our leaders."
Sen. Joseph Biden, D-Del., agreed, telling CNN: "America's credibility's at stake. This isn't about politics anymore."
No deadlines
There was no indication when Bush would sign the order creating the panel. The White House also has not decided on a deadline for the investigation -- a sensitive issue because its findings could become an issue in the presidential campaign.
"That's not something you want to do from horseback," Kay told "Fox News Sunday. "It's going to be a time-consuming process. Whether it's going to take six months or nine months, I have no idea at this point."
Sen. Jay Rockefeller, D-W.Va., vice chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, said the commission must start investigating soon. Delaying any report until after the election would be a "big mistake," he said on Fox.
Fears manipulation
David Albright, a former weapons inspector, told The Associated Press he feared the administration might try to use the commission as a way to delay judgments about the intelligence community and the administration's use of the information it receives.
"The bottom line for them [the Bush administration] is to delay the day of reckoning about their use of the weapons of mass destruction information," Albright said.
"David Kay can blame the CIA and say, 'Oh, I made all these comments based on what I heard from the intelligence community.' President Bush can't do that. He's the boss."