Presidential debates

In the United States, where the President wields a great deal of power, presidential debates are extremely important events, carefully planned out well in advance. All candidates who are participating are sent details about the program and all the rules in advance, and have a chance to comment and critique the format formally in writing ahead of time. 

So I am trying not to have too American of a response to the idea that this evening's presidential debate in Iceland was so adhoc and unplanned that the respondents did not even know the simplest things about the format of the debate before the television program began. 

Spaugstofan indeed. 

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