This article offers a commentary on the Common Core State Standards, which were developed by a talented and well-resourced team, and are purported to be of higher quality than many former or existing state standards. However, according to this author, Common Core has become much more than the standards themselves; they are the foundational element to further entrenchment of a system that also includes new assessments, augmented accountability regimes, and marketplaces of new materials, testing supports, and professional development. It is almost impossible to disentangle the Common Core from the larger apparatus of high-stakes, standards-based testing and accountability policies that dominate American schooling. The Common Core effort is the equivalent of fixing and further developing a harmful apparatus. Standards can be beneficial elements of a high-functioning educational system; so can assessments. Many well-intentioned and smart people are working to advance the Common Core and make it successful, but unless and until politicians reverse course and focus on closing opportunity gaps, the Common Core will be part of the problem, and its potential benefits will never be realized.