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(CNSNews.com) - President Bush Wednesday named Dr. Henry Kissinger to head a new national commission set up to investigate the events of Sept. 11 and the years that led up to it.

"The commission will help me and future presidents to understand the methods of America's enemies and the nature of the threats we face," the president said. He said he and Kissinger share the belief that investigators should "examine all the evidence and follow all the facts, wherever they lead. We must uncover every detail and learn every lesson from Sept. 11, " Bush said.

Kissinger served as President Nixon's national security adviser, later becoming secretary of state, a job that lasted through the Ford administration. He will lead a ten-member panel.

In addition to setting up a national commission to investigate the terror attacks, the bill President Bush signed Wednesday "directs new funds and new focus" to the task of collecting vital intelligence on terrorist threats and on weapons of mass destruction.

Former Senate Majority Leader George Mitchell, who was involved in the Middle East peace process, will be vice chair of the commission.

"There may be only one person in America who can bring to this commission the same extraordinary combination of diplomacy and understanding of international affairs and government as Henry Kissinger -- and that person is George Mitchell," Daschle said. "From Northern Ireland to the Middle East, George Mitchell has shown the courage to seek answers to some of the most difficult problems of our time."