An American what now?

This otherwise-blah Australian story caught my eye during my daily scanning of headlines. I've been trying to keep a grasp on what's going on in France, though it does completely boggle my mind.

The article intrigues me not because of Chirac's statements or anything. What got me was this line:

Flanked by the French and EU flags, Mr Chirac gave a US-style presidential speech amid widespread consternation at his relative silence during the worst case of civil unrest in a generation.

I have no idea what that means. A "US-style presidential speech"? Is there really a disctinctive American way of a leader addressing their nation? Do other world leaders not make speeches? I'm really fascinated by this.