David M Jackson, and Gregory Korte

USA TODAY

While offering a vigorous defense against claims that Russia has dirt on him — and blasting the news media along the way — Donald Trump left his news conference Wednesday with a few questions unanswered, or half-answered.

Among them (on camera at least): Did any of his associates have specific contacts with Russian officials?

(Some reporters who pursued Trump after the news conference reported that he provided a one-word response as he entered a Trump Tower elevator: "No.")

Another unanswered question, as phrased by a reporter: "Did the heads of the intelligence agencies provide you with the two-page summary of these unsubstantiated allegations?"

Trump neither confirmed nor denied in a lengthy answer, but he did suggest they did not: "I saw the information; I read the information outside of that meeting. It's all fake news. It's phony stuff. It didn't happen. And it was gotten by opponents of ours, as you know, because you reported it and so did many of the other people."

Also: "I'm not allowed to talk about what went on in a (classified) meeting."

The president-elect also declined several opportunities to say whether he would reduce or end sanctions on Russia, including those President Obama imposed last month over the hacking episode.

Trump also demurred, somewhat, when asked whether he accepted the intelligence community's findings that Russia engineered the hackings of Democrats close to Clinton.

"As far as hacking, I think it was Russia — but I think we also get hacked by other countries and other people," Trump said at one point.

Later, Trump again suggested Russian involvement, "but — you know what? — it could have been others also."

Also unanswered:

• What a new Republican health care plan might look like, essentially referring the issue to Health and Human Services-designate Tom Price. "So as soon as our secretary is approved and gets into the office, we'll be filing a plan," Trump said at one point.

• Details of a capital repatriation plan and proposed corporate tax cuts. Trump did say, "there will be a major border tax on these companies that are leaving and getting away with murder."

One thing Trump flatly refused to answer: A question from CNN, the news organization that did the story on Russian intelligence gathering on Trump.

"Not you," Trump told CNN's Jim Acosta. "Your organization is terrible ... You are fake news."

Read more:

First Take: Amid explosive controversy, Trump goes on offense

Wide-ranging news conference finds Trump confident, combative and optimistic