A video would be nice.

So let me try to articulate this:

When you push the lever on your brifter to shift from the small chain ring to the large chain ring, the lever moves but the FD does not? And likewise, you can move the FD with your hand?

Thoughts coming to my mind: tension issue. Is the cable getting pulled when you shift or is it just staying stationary? When in the small chain ring, is there a lot of slack in that cable?