Washington, Aug 4 - A slew of posters has been spotted throughout Los Angeles portraying Obama as 'The Joker' from the movie 'The Dark Knight', with the word 'socialism' printed in black above and below his face, according to media reports.

The posters show the president decked out in the kind of unnerving makeup Heath Ledger used in the latest Batman movie. Obama's face is painted white, his eyes have dark circles around them and two red scars curl up from the corner of his mouth.

It's unclear who is producing and distributing the sinister posters. They come as Democrats and Republicans continue to battle over health care reform -- which some critics warn will lead to a government takeover of health care, Fox News said.

Noting that Los Angeles residents voted for Barack Obama in large numbers last November (69 compared to 29 percent for John McCain), the Los Angeles Times said: 'It's somewhat surprising that a controversy over a public critique of the president would start on the streets of LA'.