House doesn't want Caesar dead?

[NMLevesque]

"You want me to kill Caesar?"
"Absolutely not! Caesar is of great use to me."

Then he later states that killing Caesar barely affects anything.

So why does he say no and not, 'it doesn't matter', 'either way', something like that?

 

[Walpknut]

He doesn't want Caesar dead before the Big battle, he needs the NCR to fight a fully moralized Legion and he has no itnerest in orchestrating a political assassination. Caesar keeps the NCR worried and focused on him as the enemy.

Ultimately, Caesar being a non-combatant his death has no direct effect on the coming battle but his precense has an effect on both of the factions he is playing.

 

[Cobra Commander]

This. What keeps the Legion away from the Strip is the NCR. What keeps NCR away from the Strip is the Legion.

 

[NMLevesque]

It can't be both though. He clearly doesn't think it matters but he wants him alive. Either it makes a difference, abstract or otherwise, or he has no reason to care.

 

[Walpknut]

It can be both and I already explained it.

Caesar keeps the NCR focused on him and not on House. At the same time Caesar is just a figurehead so his death doesn't actually offer any tactical gain over the Legion thus killing him is pointless.

 

[Jogre]

It can't be both though. He clearly doesn't think it matters but he wants him alive. Either it makes a difference, abstract or otherwise, or he has no reason to care.

My interpretation is that he cares enough to prefer you didn't, but realises it's not a big enough deal to kick a fuss over.

Like, if you explicitly ask him if he wants Caesar dead he'll insist you don't kill him because Caesar is of use to him.

But if you go to him having killed Caesar, he knows it doesn't really have that much of an impact, so let's it slide.