[strandinthewind]

I do not think Obama negotiated with the Iraqi govt. I think he went there for an official visit as he is a member of the Senate:

Senate Foreign Relations Committee

Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs

and

Committee on Veterans' Affairs

Clearly any of those would allow him to go there, but it mainly was the first.

As for but delaying an agreement on a "strategic framework agreement", I have to say I agree with him on this because the phrase but "strategic framework agreement" is more Bush double speak; it is meaningless.