Watch: Moment Biden is rushed away after car smashed into motorcade

Cameras have captured the moment Joe Biden is quickly whisked away after a car smashed into his motorcade. Watch video.

Joe Biden’s security agents sprung into action after a scare outside the president’s campaign headquarters in Wilmington, Delaware.

A 46-year-old man is facing drunk driving charges after his car crashed into a US Secret Service vehicle attached to the president’s motorcade, police said.

The accident occurred Sunday evening local time about 40 meters from the US president.

Police said that it was an “accidental collision” and the driver, a Wilmington man who was not identified, has been charged with driving a vehicle under the influence of alcohol and inattentive driving.

Joe Biden had a surprised expression as a car hit an SUV in the president’s motorcade. Picture: AFP

Security personnel rushed the president into a waiting vehicle following the accident and he was whisked away to his local residence.

Reporters had gathered on the sidewalk outside the campaign offices – where the president and First Lady Jill Biden had dinner with staff – and had just finished shouting questions to Mr Biden when they heard the crash and saw him with a surprised expression on his face.

US Secret Service rush to a car after it hit a motorcade SUV in Wilmington, Delaware. Picture: AFP

Agents sprang into action, cornering the silver car with Delaware license plates and drawing weapons on the driver, who held up his hands.

Reporters were then quickly rounded up by staff to join the motorcade as it departed the rain-drenched scene.

Police also joined the US Secret Service at the scene of the incident. Picture: AFP

BIDEN BACKFLIPS ON MAJOR TRADE DEAL

US president Joe Biden has ditched plans for a pact with Britain that was to pave the way for a post-Brexit trade deal, having previously hailed it as vital for economic boom.

Mr Biden has performed a U-turn on an agreement hatched by the US Trade Representative’s Office detailing 11 areas of trade and regulation having beat down opposition from his own party.

US Senate Democrats said the proposal did not provide enough protection for American workers, insiders said.

The apparent collapse of a run up to a free-trade agreement has left its British counterpart stunned and crestfallen since negotiations were due to start by the end of the year.

They had been in the pipeline since the infancy of Donald Trump’s presidency in 2016.

A UK government source told Politico that the “vibes were quite tough” from the Biden administration, which is batting pressure from hard line Democrats worried about US manufacturing and agriculture.

Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, US President Joe Biden and British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak after a trilateral meeting during the AUKUS summit in San Diego. Picture: Getty Images

Westminster has refused to move on its view that the UK will not accept chlorine-washed chicken to meet US demands aimed at increasing agricultural exports to the UK.

A spokesman for Ron Wyden, a Democratic senator who chairs the Senate finance committee, said: “Trade negotiations should be driven by substance. It is Senator Wyden’s view that the United States and United Kingdom should not make announcements until a deal that benefits Americans is achievable.”

British prime minister Rishi Sunak recently conceded delays from the US signalled a free-trade agreement was becoming increasingly unlikely.

“For a while now, that has not been a priority for either the US or UK,” he said on a recent trip across the pond to sign The Atlantic Declaration.

“What we’re both focused on is making sure that our economic partnership reflects the particular challenges and opportunities of the time that we’re in right now.”

The Atlantic Declaration includes measures such as the UK-US data bridge, which allows businesses to transfer data between the countries, and a new partnership on nuclear energy.

The UK Government has now begun signing “memorandums of understanding” (MOUs) with individual states, including Indiana, North Carolina, South Carolina, Oklahoma, Utah, Washington and Florida.

The MOUs are designed to encourage trade co-operation.

A UK government spokesman said: “The UK and US are rapidly expanding co-operation on a range of vital economic and trade issues building on the Atlantic Declaration announced earlier this year.”

- with AFP