Nice way to phrase it

Planet Gore on National Review Online

“You can’t pick an empty pocket,” lamented Yvo de Boer, director of the United Nations Framework on Climate Change. With this telling statement, Mr. de Boer expressed his concern that a global recession would decrease the amount of money developed countries could transfer to developing countries for expensive green projects.

I guess he really did say that

"You can't pick an empty pocket," Yvo de Boer, the United Nations' top climate official, told the Associated Press last week.