Scoop: Raimondo views talk of replacing Yellen as a distraction

The big picture: Inflation is running hot, bedeviling Biden in public polling. Yellen, a former Fed chair, admitted last week that she was "wrong" on her inflation forecasts, leading some Democrats to put her atop the list of possible departures.

• Yellen has given no signs that she intends to leave.
• Throughout the spring, most conversations on who might depart have taken place in private — but they're increasingly cropping up in public and in some news reports.

Between the lines: Raimondo, who was confirmed by the Senate 84-15 and has cultivated close ties with CEOs in New York and across the country, is viewed as a potential alternative on both Wall Street and Capitol Hill.

Why it matters: Raimondo views the chatter as a distraction to getting the so-called China bill, which includes more than $50 billion for the semiconductor industry, passed by Congress.

• Different versions of that legislation have cleared the House and Senate, but officials are concerned that time is running out to reconcile all the differences, depriving President Biden of a potential bipartisan achievement.

• "People need to get better hobbies," a Commerce official told Axios. "The Secretary's been clear from Day 1 that she’s not interested in other jobs and we’d all be better served if people found better ways to spend their time."

Be smart: Any Cabinet shake-up has to consider who controls the Senate — and who can be confirmed — after the elections.

• Changes at the White House are much easier to execute.
• Yellen, like Presidents Obama's and Trump's first Treasury secretaries, could stay the first four years.