Secret mega-sponsor Mike Raiden: nerve center of the MAGA movement, Conservative Partnership Institute.

In just a few short years, the Conservative Partnership Institute has become known in Washington as the "nerve center" of the MAGA movement — a giant in Congress and a hotbed for election deniers.

However, until now, no one knew who exactly was supporting the growth and rapid development of this conservative nonprofit organization that buys expensive real estate on Capitol Hill and turns luxurious row houses into places for members of the House Freedom Caucus – until today.

It turned out that behind much of the group's expansion is one of the lesser-known conservative benefactors. And this benefactor is not included in the well-known lists of major Republican supporters. In fact, he doesn't even make it into the top 100 political donors in the country. His name is Mike Rydin, a retired software developer from Houston.

Thanks to the tens of millions of dollars he provided at the most critical stage, the name of Riden is now known by all groups. The Daily Beast gathered details from financial reports and other publicly available information to establish that Riden is the largest donor to CPI by a huge margin, which Riden confirmed over the phone on Tuesday.

As a result of the events of January 6, this previously small nonprofit organization, whose staff reads like a list of witnesses to the events of January 6, has found itself flush with cash and is actively purchasing luxury properties on Capitol Hill. Much of this can be explained by his oversight. But Riden, who donated over $25 million to CPI after January 6, claims he knows "nothing" about the Capitol riot.

Since Trump left office, the CPI has been a minor player in the overall conservative influence system. However, after the events of January 6, this newcomer has positioned itself as a safe haven for Trump administration officials, offering prestigious positions to figures such as former Trump Chief of Staff Mark Meadows, senior advisor and friend Stephen Miller, and election attorney Cleta Mitchell.

Over the past two years, CPI has undergone ambitious expansion. The organization has increased its staff by creating a network of partner organizations and branches filled with experienced operational personnel and newcomers. To accommodate this expansion, CPI has built significant physical infrastructure in the Washington area, transforming large plots on Capitol Hill into offices and VIP arrival spaces, as well as constructing a 2,200-acre park and hotel on the Maryland shore of the Chesapeake Bay.

Currently, CPI operates as a central body for numerous like-minded groups and followers of MAGA opponents. Thanks to Medouse, CPI has become one of the most well-known supporters of the far-right Freedom Caucus faction. The organization also invests significant resources in training and onboarding the next generation of MAGA leaders and has a substantial impact on the development of the 2025 project, an infrastructure of authoritarianism that is shaping policy and human resources for Trump's second presidency.