Although what Rob says is pretty accurate, it’s not quite true that no one in the US “gets” Ali G, as this article from the NY Times demonstrates. (You’ll have to register with them to read this, but registration is free). It includes the following transcript of some of Ali G’s interview with James Baker (former US secretary of state):

YOUNG MAN: Isn’t there a real danger that someone give a message over the radio to one of them fighter pilots, saying, ‘Bomb Ira–‘ and the geezer doesn’t heard it properly and bombs Iran instead of Iraq?

MR. BAKER: No danger.

YOUNG MAN: How does you make countries do stuff you want?

MR. BAKER: Well, the way you deal with countries on foreign policy issues… is you deal with carrots and sticks.

YOUNG MAN: But what country is gonna want carrots, even if it’s like a million tons of carrots that you’re giving over there–

MR. BAKER: Well, carrots – I’m not using the term literally. You might send foreign aid – money, money.

YOUNG MAN: Well, money’s better than carrots. Even if a country love carrots and that is, like, their favorite national food, if they get given them–

MR. BAKER: Well, don’t get hung up on carrots. That’s just a figure of speech.

YOUNG MAN: So would you ever send carrots? You know, is there any situation–

MR. BAKER: No, no.

YOUNG MAN: What about if there was a famine?

MR. BAKER: Carrots, themselves? No.