How could we protect Against an Electromagnetic Pulse Attack?

Concerns over the possibility of North Korea using a satellite to attack the US via EMP (Electromagnetic Pulse Attack) has recently made headlines. In theory, such an attack could put down the grid just like a CME (Coronal Mass Ejection). Having already run an EMP test over the South Pole last year, North Korea seems determined to counteract US military superiority in any way it can. Caught in the act trying to transport nuclear missiles a couple months later on-board the freighter Chong Chon Gang, North Korea is perhaps our biggest threat to national security. The country is also trying to develop long range missiles capable of hitting Hawaii and possibly the west coast. While the US could easily raise North Korea to the ground in an all-out military offensive, the element of surprise still remains a key threat. So what exactly can we do to avoid or mitigate the effects of an EMP? According to Executive Director Peter Vincent Pry of the Task Force on National and Homeland Security:

"We are blind from the south. We don't have the Ballistic Missile Early Warning System or interceptor to protect us from the south".

Despite this, Arizona, Maine and Virginia have all passed legislation to ward off the effects of an Electromagnetic Pulse Attack. Power companies throughout the country are also trying to retrofit their systems to safeguard against EMP and CME threats. Powering off the grid completely will greatly reduce damage but congress needs to act quickly to enhance our Early Warning System. Until the matter is taken more seriously, we remain highly vulnerable.