that the senate just says, okay, we ll match those cuts, which is a little bit more than $16 million just so we can pass the house, the version that the house is on. we re urging congress to pass the bill that extends the faa so that our employees can receive paycheck checks. but as important, 70,000 construction workers are out of work. and there could be up to a billion in taxes that will not be collected. so, again, for mechanics of the house and senate who decry the debt and deficit, they re not allowing this money to go in the coffers and not allowing construction workers to go to work. congress should pass a bill today to send 70,000 construction workers back to work. 4,000 faa workers back to work. let s get the faa running again. secretary lahood, someone on twitter is asking if you can clearly explain which part of the faa is affected by this?
the people working on next generation technology, the people working on research, the people that are helping us get us into the next generation of guiding planes in and out of airports. safety is not compromised. never has been. never will be. the traveling public s travel will not be compromised. what is compromised are 70,000 construction workers right smack dab in the middle of the construction season. they can not afford to go without a paycheck. and 4,000 of our own workers. this is not the best way to run the best and safest aviation system in the world. we shouldn t be doing this. is there a safety issue here? there is not a safety issue, not at all. i know that you re a former congressman. when you re looking at the impasse, the standoffs we re seeing on capitol hill, can you ever recall a situation where the dysfunction was so clear? congress has always had a rich history of compromise. that s the only way that we solve our country s problems.
vote. throughout america there isn t a name that stirs more love, more admiration, more respect, more wishing for our daughters to be like her than the name of congresswoman gabby giffords. thank you, gabby. aided by her husband, surrounded by friends, the congresswoman departed as quietly as she had arrived. leaving her colleagues, who had been bruised by months of political battles, sharing welcomed tears of joy. there s so many doubters but never doubt gabby giffords. this is the first of many votes she will cast. nothing could have done more to heal congress s wounded spirits than seeing gabby giffords back on the job, even for one vote. and today mark kelly and his fellow astronauts will be at the white house to be thanked and honored by the president. contes contessa? thank you. debbie waser man shuttle will talk at 11:00 a.m.
and that s the only way that congress can really get at important issues. compromise has to happen in order for the country to solve its problems. and this last period hasn t been a very highmark for compromise. i would say that. transportation secretary ray lahood, thank you, sir. i appreciate your time today. thank you. a rough day for the auto industry. ford recalling 1.1 million pickup trucks because of a defect that can cause gas tanks to fall off and potentially catch fire. one person was injured with first and second-degree burns as a result of the defect, which has been blamed for eight car fires. and setback for the redesigned civic compact. consumer reports is not recommending the car. it scored poorly on road tests. the civic was supposed to mark a comebam for the japanese automaker since the earthquake and tsunami in march. i love that my daughter s part fish.
talking about the impasse over the faa, what are the options at this point? the options are for congress to pass an extension of the faa bill as they have done on 20 occasions to put 70,000 construction workers back to work so the government can continue to collect the tax that they re not able to collect. and so that 4,000 faa workers can go back to work. right smack dab in the middle of the construction season. 70,000 construction workers are out of work. this is one of the highest sectors of unemployment. for all these congressman and senators who love to talk about creating jobs, send these construction workers back to work on these important jobs at airports. send the faa employees back to work and let s get the faa back in the kind of operation that it should be. okay. so the house has already passed a short-term extension that eliminates subsidies for rural air service. it s sort of been a sticking point on the short-term resolution for the senate. do you think there s any w