Kansas City
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Two months ago NCLR’s board voted to deny Kansas City the 2009 conference in retaliation for Kansas City Mayor Mark Funkhouser allowing Frances Semler to be a member of the city’s parks board. Semler is a member of the Minuteman Civil Defense Corps, which NCLR has deemed an extremist, vigilante organization.\
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In resigning, Semler said she felt “betrayed” by the lack of support from the mayor, and said the controversy just overwhelmed her, according to Associated Press. She said the city asked her to renounce her membership in the Minuteman group. She refused.\
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But NCLR said the resignation came too late to win back the conference.\
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\0x201CUnfortunately because of the mayor’s lack of leadership and sensitivity to the Hispanic community, it is now too late,” said NCLR’s president, Janet Murguia.\
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— Stephen Dinan, national political reporter, The Washington Times \
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