President Bush and David Kay, the recently resigned head of the Iraq Survey Group looking for banned weapons of mass destruction in Iraq, had luncheon February 2 at the White House, White House Press Secretary Scott McClellan told reporters.

Kay's visit, McClellan said, was "an opportunity for the president to hear directly from Dr. Kay and hear about what he has learned as the former head of the Iraq Survey Group."

Earlier in the day, President Bush told reporters that he was going to form an independent, bipartisan commission to study intelligence on weapons of mass destruction, but only after he had met personally with Kay, who said last week that he did not think weapons of mass destruction would be found in Iraq.

Bush is forming a commission not just to look into intelligence regarding Iraq but concerning "the global security challenges we face in the 21st century," McClellan said.

"It's important that we take a broad look at our intelligence capabilities," the spokesman said, particularly related to weapons of mass destruction and the spread of weapons of mass destruction -- "the serious new threats that we face in the 21st century."

Bush, McClellan said, will have more to say soon on the scope and the timing of the commission.

The commission "hasn't even been announced officially at this point. We're still working on finalizing everything that goes into the commission and finalizing the makeup of the commission," McClellan said.

"(T)he global intelligence challenges that we face in this age, in this 21st century are new, they're harder, they're more complex. And that's why we need to take a look not only back, but a look forward at ways that we can improve our ability to confront these threats," he said.

Specifically relating to intelligence on Iraq, McClellan defended the decision to go to war with Iraq. "(W)e got it right that Saddam Hussein was a grave and gathering threat. We got it right that he had the intention and capability. He was a threat. We got it right. And it was the right decision to remove him from power," the press secretary said.

The intelligence on Iraq, he added, "was shared by agencies around the world. It was intelligence that was shared by the United Nations. It was Saddam Hussein's choice to continue to defy the international community. He was given every opportunity, including one final opportunity, to come clean."

The facts show that Saddam Hussein was in clear violation of U.N. Security Council Resolution 1441, McClellan said.

"It was the right decision. It was the right decision to confront Saddam Hussein and remove him from power."

Kay, he added, has pointed out that it's very important for the Iraq Survey Group to continue its work under Charles Duelfer, who is taking Kay's place.

Kay has noted, McClellan said, that "there's still work to be done by the Iraq Survey Group, there's still sites to go to, people to interview, and that work is ongoing," McClellan said.

President Bush "has great confidence" in Central Intelligence Agency Director George Tenet and "in the hardworking men and women in our intelligence community whose number one priority is the safety and the security of the American people," McClellan said.

BUSH NOMINATES CRAIG KELLY AS AMBASSADOR TO CHILE

President Bush February 2 announced his intention to nominate Craig A. Kelly, of California, to be U.S. Ambassador to Chile.

A career member of the Senior Foreign Service, Kelly currently serves as executive assistant to the secretary of State, the White House said in a statement.

Prior to that position, he served in the same position for the under secretary of State for Political Affairs. Kelly previously served as chief of Political-Military Affairs at the United States embassy in Paris. He earned his bachelor's degree and his Ph.D. from the University of California, Los Angeles.