France–United States relations between France and the United States became friendlier after Nicolas Sarkozy was elected President of France in 2007. Sarkozy, who has been called "Sarko the American", has said that he "love[s] America" and that he is "proud of his nickname". In 2007, Sarkozy delivered a speech before the U.S. Congress that was seen as a strong affirmation of French–American ties; during the visit, he also met with President George W. Bush as well as senators John McCain and Barack Obama (before they were chosen as presidential candidates). Obama and McCain also met with Sarkozy in Paris after securing their respective
President of France resulted in legal controversies. The President of the Republic enjoys immunity during his term: he cannot be requested to testify before any jurisdiction, he cannot be prosecuted, etc. However, the statute of limitation is suspended during his term, and enquiries and prosecutions can be restarted, at the latest one month after he leaves office. The President is not deemed personally responsible for his actions in his official capacity, except where his actions are indicted before the International Criminal Court (France is a member of the ICC and the President is a French citizen as another following the Court's rules) or