Donald Trump and his staff in the White House are preparing for the imminent release of the Mueller report, which has reportedly led to "breakdown-level" anxiety in the West Wing.

That waiting game comes as Mr Trump has doubled down on his demand for better border security, and follows after attorney general William Barr announced new US policy that asylum seekers who cross illegally between ports of entry would no longer have the right to ask a judge to grant them bond for release.

Under the new Justice Department policy, those migrants will have to wait in detention until their case can adjudicated — a process that can take a considerable amount of time given America's backlogged immigration courts.

Mr Trump has also turned on Fox News after the right-wing news channel hosted a town hall debate with Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders. Trump tweeted that the event had been "stuffed with Bernie supporters," adding: "What's with @FoxNews?"

Mr Barr is expected to release his report on Thursday morning, when he will hold a press conference to discuss the issue.

Meanwhile, the race for the Democratic nomination to take the president on in 2020 has been heating up just under eight months until the first votes will be cast in that primary season.

Currently leading the pack of candidates are Joe Biden, Bernie Sanders, and — at least in recent polls — Pete Buttigieg, who has outperformed expectations in the past couple of weeks.

Read The Independent’s updates as they happen in our live blog below.