By now you've probably heard the big news -- U.S. President Donald Trump and First Lady Melania Trump have both tested positive for Covid-19.
Trump has been moved to the Walter Reed medical centre, a military hospital, as a "precautionary measure" and given a variety of treatments, including an experimental antibodies cocktail and the antiviral Remdesivir treatment.
But Trump is not the only top Republican leader infected with the virus.
Several Republican Senators and White House staffers, both current and former, have contracted Covid-19.
And they were all gathered at the same spot during one major event.
The nomination of Amy Coney Barrett
A ceremony in the White House Rose Garden on Sep. 26 has come under focus for the number of attendees who have since tested positive for the virus.
It was held to formally introduce Trump's pick for the Supreme Court, Amy Coney Barrett, after the death of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg left a vacancy open.
There was some controversy over the fact that the Republican-dominated Senate, led by Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, had denied President Obama's pick of Merrick Garland in March 2016 to fill the spot left by the death of Justice Scalia.
The Senate is responsible for conducting hearings on a president's nomination for the Supreme Court, and voting to confirm them.
McConnell cited the presidential election later that year as the reason to delay hearings on Obama's nomination.
However, he decided to push ahead with the hearings on Trump's nomination, despite this year's upcoming presidential election.
Who was there?
According to ABC News, other than Trump and Melania, the following people were present at the event and also tested positive for Covid-19:
- Senator Mike Lee of Utah.
- Senator Thom Tillis of North Carolina.
- Kellyanne Conway, former Counselor to the President.
The other two were John Jenkins, President of the University of Notre Dame, and an unnamed journalist.
Barrett herself tested positive for Covid-19 earlier in the year, but has since recovered.
Photos and videos of the event showed that very few people were wearing masks, and social distancing guidelines did not appear to be observed.
Guests were administered a "rapid" virus test.
Once they received a negative result, they were told they could remove their masks, according to the Washington Post.
However, one negative test does not necessarily mean that someone is in the clear, due to the virus's incubation period.
Virus affecting key figures in Trump's party
Other people in Trump's orbit, such as senior presidential counselor Hope Hicks, Chair of the Republican National Committee Ronna McDaniel and campaign manager Bill Stepien have also tested positive for the virus.
Washington Post reported that in the week before Trump's positive test, he held various events, such as rallies and fundraisers, and came into close contact with many other people.
Photos and videos from the public events show that Trump rarely wore a mask while outside.
Former New Jersey Governor Chris Christie, who helped Trump to prepare for his debate against Joe Biden, said he was awaiting his test results.
"No one was wearing masks in the room when we were prepping the president. … The group was about five or six people in total," said Christie to ABC News.
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Top image from Getty Images.