US President Donald Trump has dismissed the federal investigation into alleged Russian collusion in the 2016 election and talks about a proposed border wall. His lawyers had been reassured he was not a target in Special Counsel Robert Mueller's investigation, he said. Talks in Congress about wall funding - the issue behind the recent government shutdown - were a "waste of time". Trump was interviewed by the New York Times, a paper he repeatedly described as "failing" in the past. The paper's interview with Trump came after he contacted its publisher, AG Sulzberger.

 Sulzberger asked the president to stop his attacks on the media last year, saying they could "lead to violence" against journalists. Dismissing the talks between congressional Republicans and Democrats over the impasse and implying he could declare a national emergency to ensure the barrier is built, Trump said, "I'll continue to build the wall, and we'll get the wall finished."

Tapping into emergency presidential powers could enable Trump to bypass Congress and access the money and resources needed to complete the project.