Jim Lehrer has been negatively panned for being too passive when he moderated the first presidential debate for the 2012 Presidential election. Lehrer, 78, was criticized for being too lax: one editor wrote he let Romney "steamroll" him while Fox News Sunday's Chris Wallace reportedly stated he felt Lehrer "seemed to lose control of the debate." Lehrer released a statement through a PBS spokesperson on Thursday, Oct.4. He stated his job was to simply "to stay out of the way," and that he "had no problems with doing so."